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iLllViiLlI 


Timothy  Flint 

Pioneer,  Missionary,  Author,  Editor 

1780-1840 

The  story  of  his  life  among  the  Pioneers  and  Fron- 
tiersmen in  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Valley 
and  in  New  England  and  the  South 


By 


JOHN  ERVIN  KIRKPATRICK,  ph.d.,  hartford 


CLEVELAND,  OHIO 

THE    ARTHUR    H.   CLARK   COMPANY 

I  q  I  I 


92T80 


COPYRIGHT,    191  1,   BY 

JOHN   ERVIN   KIRKPATRICK 


F 


To  My  Wife 

in  acknowledgment  of  her  help  and  inspiration 

in  the  preparation  of  this  volume 


■^ 


CONTENTS 


Preface         

Introduction 

I  Youth  and  Education      .... 

II  The  early  Ministry  in  New  England    . 
fj        III       The  Mission  to  the  Far  West 

V        IV        Itinerating  in  the  Ohio  Valley 
VVf*     V         The  Journey  down  the  Mississippi  and  So 
jouRN  IN  St.  Louis        .... 

VI  St.  Charles  and  surrounding  Regions    . 

VII  On  the  Great  River  and  the  Arkansas 

VIII  Preaching  and  Farming  in  Missouri 

IX  Florida  and  New  Orleans 

X  The  Home  on  the  Red  River 

XI  A  NEW  Lease  of  Life        .... 

XII  Literary  Work  in  Cincinnati 

XIII  New  England  and  New  York 

XIV  Travels  in  Foreign  Countries 

XV  Louisiana  and  the  last  Days 

XVI  Literary  Traits  and  Estimates 

XVII  Personal  and  Religious  Characteristics 
Appendix  A -Itinerary  of  Timothy  Flint 
Appendix  B  -  Flint's  Letter  of  Resignation  to  the  Mis- 
sionary Society  of  Connecticut       .... 

Appendix  C  -  Micah   P.  Flint's  "Lines,  on  Passing  the 
Grave  of  my  Sister"     ...... 

Appendix  D  -  The  Family  Prayer  of  Timothy  Flint 
Appendix  E  -  The  Being  of  a  God 

Bibliography 

Index    


1 

3 


15 
17 
21 

35 
51 
65 

83 

lOI 

117 

131 
149 

163 
173 
185 
203 
217 
229 
249 
267 
289 

291 

297 
301 
302 
305 
319 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

The  Flint  Homestead,  Alexandria,  Louisiana     Frontispiece 

Built  by  Emeline  Flint  Thomas,  about  1840 

Birthplace   of   Timothy    Flint,    North    Reading, 

Massachusetts 23 

Burned  about  1900 

The  Parsonage  at  Lunenburg,  Massachusetts       .  37 

Slightly  altered  in  recent  years 

Home  of  General  Harrison,  North  Bend,  Ohio      .  73 

From  the  original  oil-painting 

Presbyterian  Church,  St.  Charles,  Missouri        .         143 

Built  about  1819 

Timothy  Flint's  Monument,  Harmony  Grove  Cem- 
etery, Salem,  Massachusetts        ....        245 


He  painted  on  his  glowing  page, 

The  peerless  valle)'  of  the  West ; 
That  shall  in  every  coming  age, 

His  genius  and  his  toil  attest. 

But  wouldst  thou,  gentle  pilgrim,  know 
What  worth,  what  love,  endeared  the  man? 

This  the  lone  hearts  that  miss  him,  show 
Better  than  storied  marble  can. 

—  James  Flint,  d.d. 


PREFACE 

A  large  amount  of  material  and  that  for  a  period  for 
this  study,  where  I  had  almost  nothing  else,  came  from 
Mr.  Flint's  grandchildren,  Mrs.  Emeline  Flint  Seip 
of  Alexandria,  Louisiana,  and  James  Timothy  Flint 
of  Nashville,  Tennessee.  Family  letters,  photographs, 
newspapers  and  traditions -everything  which  could 
in  any  way  aid  me  -  have  been  freely  and  gladly  put  at 
my  disposal.  With  them  I  have  shared  the  pain  in 
thinking  of  the  treasures  that  v^ere  destroyed  by  the 
Union  army  in  Alexandria,  which  burned  the  library 
of  James  Timothy  Flint  Sr.  This  was  a  very  large 
and  rare  collection  of  books  that  was  hardly  equaled 
by  any  private  collection  in  the  south.  It  contained 
also  most  of  Timothy  Flint's  collection  of  books  and 
some  of  the  manuscripts  which  he  left  at  the  time  of  his 
death.  A  more  recent  and  unavoidable  accident,  the 
Galveston  flood  of  1900,  destroyed  a  number  of  the 
books  and  papers  of  Timothy  Flint  which  were  in  the 
possession  of  his  grandchildren.  The  only  portrait 
of  Mr.  Flint,  which  is  known  to  have  been  in  existence, 
was  destroyed  at  that  time. 

I  am  under  special  obligations  to  the  librarians  of 
Hartford  Theological  Seminary,  Yale  University,  and 
Harvard  University  for  their  aid  in  procuring  books 
and  manuscripts  which  could  not  have  been  obtained 
otherwise.     The  Essex  Institute  at  Salem,  the  Amer- 


i6  PREFACE 

ican  Antiquarian  Society  of  Worcester,  the  Boston 
Public  Library,  and  the  Congregational  Libraries  of 
Hartford,  Connecticut,  and  Boston,  I  have  found  rich 
and  generous  with  their  manuscript  collections.  The 
librarians  of  Reading,  North  Reading,  and  Lunen- 
burg, Massachusetts,  the  local  historians  in  these 
places,  and  indeed  in  almost  every  place  that  I  have 
had  occasion  to  visit  or  address  have  been  most  willing 
and  generous  in  the  aid  they  have  given  me  in  my 
researches. 

I  desire  also  to  express  my  obligations  to  Professor 
Samuel  Simpson,  PH.D.,  of  Hartford  Theological 
Seminary  for  valuable  suggestions  after  reading  my 
manuscript,  and  to  the  Robert  Clarke  Company  for 

/  permission  to  use  material  from  W.  H.  Venable's  Lit- 

'    erary  Beginnings  in  the  Ohio  Fa/ley. 

John  E.  Kirkpatrick. 
Hartford,  Connecticut,  May  i,  1908. 


INTRODUCTION 

A  very  helpful  introduction  to  the  study  of  our 
frontier  in  the  early  national  periods  and  to  the  life  and 
institutions  of  our  great  west  may  be  gained  from  an 
acquaintance  with  the  ministers,  teachers,  and  writers 
of  those  regions  and  times.  As  the  pioneer  ministers 
were  usually  teachers,  and  often  writers  as  well,  they 
may  be  of  especial  importance.  Indeed  they  were 
men  who  touched  the  simple  and  plastic  society  very 
widely  and  vitally  and  they  turned  their  hands  to  all 
kinds  of  service.  Just  as  in  former  ages  and  in  early 
stages  of  society  the  men  of  the  religious  orders  were 
the  natural  leaders  so  it  proved  to  be  in  the  march  of 
American  civilization  beyond  the  AUeghanies.  Such 
a  man  was  Timothy  Flint,  pioneer,  missionary, 
teacher,  author.  First  he  served  in  New  England, 
his  native  land.  For  the  major  portion  of  his  active 
years  he  became  a  resident  of  several  places  in  the 
Ohio  and  Mississippi  Valleys.  His  residence  in  these 
regions  and  his  acquaintance  with  them  was  unusually 
extended  and  intimate.  To  speak  of  him  only  as  a 
minister  it  seems  fair  to  say  that  there  was  no  more 
significant  man  who  crossed  into  the  great  western 
valleys  in  the  first  quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century  or 
who  lived  there,  than  Timothy  Flint. 

Among  the  "itinerants,"  the  clerical  order  largely 
peculiar  to  the  Methodists,  having  many  of  the  feat- 


i8  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

ures  of  the  preaching  orders  of  the  Middle  Ages,  and 
so  marvelously  adapted  to  the  crude  and  critical  con- 
ditions of  the  frontier  society,  none  was  more  striking 
or  t\'pical  than  Peter  Cartwright.  Among  the  strict 
Calvinists,  represented  most  purely  by  the  Baptist 
bodies,  the  most  significant  man  was  John  Mason 
Peck.  Among  the  Arminianized  Presbyterians,  was 
Finis  Ewing  as  leader  of  the  Cumberland  Presbytery. 
Corresponding  to  William  EUery  Channing  in  New 
England,  was  Alexander  Campbell  in  the  wTSt,  anx- 
ious to  revise  the  Calvinistic  scheme,  or  seeking  rather 
to  substitute  for  it  another  system  founded  more  nearly 
as  he  thought  upon  the  Bible.  Representing  the  me- 
diating and  eclectic  school  of  Calvinism  in  the  west 
was  Timothy  Flint.  He  was  almost  alone  in  his  theolo- 
gy, and  was  barely  tolerated  by  the  Old  School  Pres- 
byterians. With  Lyman  Beecher,  the  New  School 
Presbyterians,  or  the  Congregationalists,  all  of  whom 
came  later  into  the  west,  Timothy  Flint  might  have 
been  quite  at  home. 

While  in  his  w^estern  missionary  work  Mr.  Flint 
was  a  Presbyterian.  In  New"  England  he  had  re- 
mained w^ith  the  orthodox,  though  taking  little  part  in 
ecclesiastical  afifairs.  In  later  life  he  found  his  spir- 
itual affinities,  both  w^est  and  east  among  the  Unita- 
rians, in  which  body  most  of  his  classmates  and  many  of 
his  early  ministerial  brethren  were  finally  numbered. 
Yet  it  is  quite  clear  that  Flint  never  counted  himself 
as  a  Unitarian,  nor  was  he  willing  to  be  counted  as 
such. 

Among  all  the  western  ministers  and  missionaries  of 
the  period  Timothy  Flint  was  the  one  who,  while  a 


INTRODUCTION  19 

part  of  the  life,  was  best  able  to  rise  above  it  and  view 
it  with  a  critical  yet  kindly  eye.  Added  to  this  power 
was  the  ability  and  will  to  record  what  he  saw,  as  did 
none  among  his  contemporaries.  There  were  plenty 
of  journals,  memoirs,  and  missionary  reports  from 
these  early  ministers.  There  were  literar}''  produc- 
tions of  all  kinds,  but  no  other  missionary  of  that  pe- 
riod can  compare  with  him,  judged  by  historical  and 
literar}'  standards.  Indeed  as  a  historian  and  littera- 
teur, Mr.  Flint  had  no  superior  among  the  men  who 
lived  with  him  the  pioneer  life,  and  who  rose  far 
enough  above  the  discouragements  of  the  age  to  make 
a  literary  beginning  in  the  great  middle  west.  He 
may  at  least  be  compared -not  altogether  unfavor- 
ably-in  fiction,  history,  and  poetry,  with  our  leading 
American  writers  in  the  first  third  of  the  nineteenth 
century. 

There  is  also  a  magnetism  and  charm  in  the  char- 
acter of  Mr.  Flint  which  strongly  attracts  all  who 
come  into  touch  with  him  through  his  writings. 

He  should  also  be  recognized  because  of  the  message 
which  he  has  for  our  day.  His  message  is:  against 
sectarianism,  the  dominance  of  creed,  against  dema- 
gogism  in  politics,  commercial  absorption  and  greed, 
against  jingoism  and  war.  His  is  a  plea  for  the  opti- 
mistic outlook  upon  the  future  of  mankind  on  the 
earth  and  in  the  world  beyond. 

Not  three  quarters  of  a  century  have  passed  since 
Timothy  Flint  died.  But  he  is  remembered  only  by 
relatives,  some  of  the  older  people  in  the  several 
places  where  he  lived,  and  by  a  few  scholars  who  deal 
with  the  records  of  his  times.     At  Yale  University  I 


20  INTRODUCTION 


find  but  one  man  among  several  professors  in  the 
English  and  historical  departments  who  know  any- 
thing of  his  life  or  work.  I  shall  count  it  time  well 
employed  and  work  well  repaid  if  this  study  helps  to 
rescue  the  memory  of  Timothy  Flint  from  the  obliv- 
ion that  it  so  little  deserves  and  which  the  world  can 
so  ill  aftord. 


I.    YOUTH  AND  EDUCATION 

On  a  Lord's  day,  the  twenty-third  of  July,  1780,  and 
on  the  twelfth  day  after  his  birth,  a  child  was  carried 
to  the  meeting  house  of  the  North  Parish,  Reading, 
Massachusetts,  that  he  might  be  given  the  ancient  rite 
of  baptism/  The  name  given  him  was  Timothy. 
His  parents  were  William  and  Martha  Kimball 
Flint.  The  child  was  born  in  a  house  standing  on  a 
slight  hill  on  the  south  of  the  Ipswich  River  valley 
and  a  half  mile  south  of  the  meeting  house  hill  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  river.  The  farm  where  he  was 
born  was  for  one  hundred,  twenty-five  years  the  home 
of  the  Flints.  It  continued  so  until  the  death  of 
Timothy's  father  in  1828.  The  house  where  he  was 
born  stood  until  the  early  years  of  the  present  century 
when  it  was  burned.  William  Flint,"  the  father  of 
Timothy,  was  the  son  of  a  William,^  and  the  grandson 
of  a  William. 

This  first  William,^  in  North  Reading,  had  inher- 
ited part  of  his  father's  homestead.  His  father, 
Thomas,  had  settled  about  1700  on  what  was,  as  has 

^  North  Reading  Parish  Records.  Mr.  Flint's  birth  date  is  not  given  in 
these  records  but  July  n  is  the  accepted  date  and  is  probably  correct. 

-  Born  1737,  died  1828.  Different  dates  are  given  in  the  parish  records 
for  William  Flint's  birth  and  death.  I  have  used  the  most  probable  ones. 
These  dates  and  those  of  the  next  three  notes  are  from  the  parish  records 
and  the  Flint  Genealogies. 

^  Born  1714,  died  1790. 

*  Born    1685,    died    1736. 


22  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

been  said,  the  Flint  homestead  for  more  than  a  cen- 
tury. This  Thomas '  was  born  in  Salem,  Massachu- 
setts, where  his  father  William  had  settled  about  1638, 
coming  from  England  where  he  was  born,  1603,  and 
dying  in  Salem,  1672.  The  William  Flint  who  came 
from  England  owned  a  farm  in  a  section  now  a  part  of 
Salem.  The  narrow  and  crooked  street,  called  Flint 
Street,  which  runs  through  the  western  part  of  this 
queer  old  town  w'ith  its  three  story  houses,  is  commonly 
said  to  date  back  to  the  Flint  Farm.  Thomas  Flint 
had  nine  children,  all  born  in  Salem,  so  that  it  must 
have  been  rather  late  in  his  life  that  he  settled  at  North 
Reading.  His  second  son,  named  Timothy,  was  born 
in  1680,  just  one  hundred  years  earlier  than  the  man 
in  whom  we  are  interested.  The  fact  that  this  name 
is  very  uncommon  in  the  Flint  annals,  and  the  even 
date  suggest  the  probability  that  our  Timothy  was 
named  for  this  great  uncle.^ 

The  Flints  were  not  only  early  in  the  Reading  set- 
tlement but  they  have  also  had  from  the  first,  a  part  in 
the  Second  or  North  Parish  Church.  Four  of  their 
names  appear  in  the  first  list  of  members,  1720.  It  is 
the  common  saying  in  North  Reading  that  from  that 
time  until  the  present  the  old,  and  the  succeeding 
Trinitarian  or  orthodox,  church  has  not  been  without 
a  Flint  among  its  deacons." 

^  Born  1644  or  1645,  died  1721. 

^  For  full  account,  see  the  "Flint  Farail)',"  in  Mrs.  Harriet  R.  Cooke's 
Dri'ver  Family,  291-307. 

'  See  North  Reading  Union  Congregational  Church  Manual. 

In  the  early  days  of  this  parish  it  was  known  as  the  "North  Precinct 
Congregation."  The  present  church,  the  Union  Congregational,  has  in- 
herited the  parish  records  but  its  name  does  not  go  back  of  1836.  See  notes 
17  and  18. 


Birthplace  of  Timothy  Flint,  North  Read- 
ing, Massachusetts 

Burned  about   1900 


YOUTH  AND  EDUCATION  25 

The  Timothy  of  our  story  was  the  fifth  child  in  a 
family  of  nine.  Judging  by  his  later  painful  expe- 
riences in  farming  it  would  seem  that  he  was  called 
upon  for  very  little  work  on  his  father's  farm.  He 
was  not  physically  strong  and  was  early  sent  to  school. 

From  his  familiarity  with  Salem  and  the  sea,  and 
from  a  number  of  references  made  in  his  later  life,  to 
Doctor  Prince,  of  the  First  Church,  Salem,  it  seems 
probable  that  Timothy  spent  part  of  his  childhood 
and  school  days  at  Salem.  He  seems  to  have  been 
almost  as  much  at  home  there  as  in  North  Reading. 
Speaking,  in  1828,  of  the  First  Church  in  Salem,  he 
says  that  he  had  spent  his  boyhood  days  there.  Speak- 
ing of  the  sea  he  says :  "Many  of  the  hours  of  my  boy- 
hood were  nurtured  in  its  chill  and  healthful  waters."  * 

One  of  the  memorable  events  of  his  boyhood,  which 
was  to  have  a  determining  influence  on  his  later  course 
of  life,  was  the  departure  of  the  emigrants,  from  Essex 
and  Middlesex  Counties,  for  "Marietta  on  the  Ohio." 
Among  the  forty-seven  men  who  made  up  this  com- 
pany was  an  uncle  of  Timothy,  Hezekiah  Flint.^ 
Writing  thirty  years  later  of  this  early  experience 
he  says  of  the  second  emigrant  party  that  he  remem- 
bered the  black  canvas  covering  of  the  wagon: 
"the  white  and  large  lettering  in  capitals  To  Marietta 
on  the  Ohio.''''  He  remembered  the  food,  which  even 
then,  the  thought  of  such  a  distant  expedition,  fur- 
nished to  his  imagination.     Some  twenty  emigrants 

**  IVestern  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  i,  317,  372. 

^Hezekiah  Flint  moved  to  Cincinnati  from  Marietta  some  time  before  the 
year  of  his  death,  1811.  His  son  of  the  same  name  continued  to  live  in  that 
city  and  was  an  honored  citizen  when  Timothy  made  his  home  there.  See 
also  Julia  P.   Cutler's  Life  and  Times  of  Ephraim  Cutler ^  203,  note. 


a6  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

accompanied  this  wagon.  The  Reverend  Doctor 
Manassch  Cutler  he  thinks,  had  the  direction  of  this 
band  of  emigrants.  He  tells  us  that  the  good  Doctor 
Cutler  left  an  enemy  behind  in  the  person  of  the  late 
learned  and  eccentric  Doctor  Bently  of  Salem,  Mass- 
achusetts. Doctor  Bently  was  a  contributor  to  a  local 
paper  and  took  vengeance  upon  Doctor  Cutler  by 
writing  doggerel  verses  about  him  and  his  enterprise. 
The  young  Timothy's  imagination  was  not  so  much 
occupied  with  visions  of  the  far  away  Ohio  but  that 
he  learned  the  verses  and  could  repeat  them  when  he 
was  near  fifty  years  of  age.^" 

Marvelous  stories  about  the  fertility  of  the  new 
country  would  be  told  by  the  returning  travelers  at  one 
time.  Again  the  tide  would  turn  and  harrowing  ac- 
counts of  suffering,  danger,  and  death  would  be  told 
to  deter  the  intending  emigrants.  All  would  tend  to 
make  the  boy  decide  to  see  some  day  for  himself. 
Concerning  the  stories  he  tells  us: 

The  wags  of  the  day  exercised  their  wit,  in  circulating  carica- 
tured and  exaggerated  editions  of  the  stories  of  the  first  adven- 
turers, that  there  were  springs  of  brandy;  flax,  that  bore  little 
pieces  of  cloth  on  the  stems;  enormous  pumpkins  and  melons,  and 
the  like.  Accounts  the  most  horrible  were  added  of  hoop  snakes 
of  such  deadly  malignity,  that  a  sting,  which  they  bore  in  their 
tails,  when  it  punctured  the  bark  of  a  green  tree,  instantly  caused 
its  leaves  to  become  sear,  and  the  tree  to  die.  Stories  of  Indian 
massacres  and  barbarities  were  related  in  all  their  horrors.^^ 

There  are  many  reflections  of  Timothy's  childhood 
and  its  surroundings  in  his  writings.  In  1828  he 
went  he  says, 

^°  Flint,  Timothy.     A  condensed  Geography  and  History  of  the  Western 
States,  of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  vol.  ii,  362,  263. 
^^  — Idein,  vol.  ii,  263. 


YOUTH  AND  EDUCATION  27 


To  view  once  more  the  final  resting  place 
Of  my  forefathers,     .     .     . 

and  to  see  the 

.     .     .     natal  vale 
Whose  trodden  bounds  were  once  my  world. 

It  was  then,  resting  upon  his  father's  newly  made 
grave  that  he  says : 

Fond  memory  dwells 
On  the  blithe  morning  of  my  youthful  j'ears, 
When  I  pursu'd  thee  midst  the  new-mown  hay, 
And  chased  the  scared  lark,  that  soar'd  in  song; 
Or  when  the  darkling,  wind-borne,  murky  cloud 
In  thunder  burst,  clung  closely  to  thy  side. 
And  now  I  rest  me  on  my  father's  grave. 
Where  has  elaps'd  the  long,  long,  weary  dream, 
Since,  as  a  child,  behind  thy  longer  stride 
I  gaily  tripp'd?  ^- 

There  is  a  description  of  a  spring  day  when  he  was  a 
school  boy  of  ten.  The  winter  had  been  unusually 
long  and  severe.     He  says: 

The  vast  masses  of  snow  were  beginning  to  melt.  The  birds 
of  prey,  shut  up  in  their  retreats  during  the  bitter  winter,  sailed 
forth  in  the  mild  clear  blue.  The  blue  bird  whistled;  and  my 
heart  expanded  with  joy  and  delight  unknown,  in  the  same  de- 
gree, before  or  since.  The  place  where  these  thoughts,  comprising 
my  youthful  anticipations,  hopes  and  visions  occurred,  will  never 
be  obliterated  from  my  mind,  while  memory  holds  her  seat.^^ 

"The  meadows  and  the  flower  fring'd  stream"  of 
his  native  place  were  the  fond  delight  of  his  memory 
after  he  had  wandered  far  amidst  nature's  greater 
works.     Of  this  memory  and  his  love  of  nature  he 

12  "On  revisiting  the  Churchyard  of  My  Native  Place"  in  Ji'estern 
Monthly  Re-vietv,  vol.   ii,  210,  211. 

1'  Flint,  Timothy.  The  Art  of  Being  Happy:  From  the  French  of  Droz. 
'Sur  L'Art  D'Etre  Heiireux;'  in  a  series  of  letters  from  a  Father  to  his 
Children:  luith  Comments  and  Observations,  286. 


28  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

Speaks  in  his  introduction  to  his  Lecture  upon  Nat- 
ural History.''  Still  more  of  Mr.  Flint's  love  for 
nature  and  of  the  romantic  spirit  of  his  youth  is  hinted 
at  when  he  makes  Francis  Berrian  explain  his  dream- 
ing habits  to  his  Mexican  friends  by  telling  them  of 
his  delight  in  spending  hours  in  the  rain  and  storm, 
sitting  by  the  Atlantic  in  his  boyhood,  that  when  his 
relatives  remonstrated  with  him  for  his  exposure  of 
himself  and  for  his  melancholy  habits,  it  w^as  in  vain 
that  he  told  them  that  such  hours  w^ere  the  happiest  of 
his  life.  While  telling  of  this  trait  in  his  hero,  the 
author  remarks  of  him,  that  he  was  fully  in  sympathy 
with  Rousseau,  w^hen  he  speaks  of  lying  on  his  back  in 
a  skiff  floating  on  a  lake  at  the  will  of  the  winds.  To 
gaze  into  the  heavens  under  such  circumstances  and  to 
give  wings  to  his  soul  was  the  keenest  delight  of  Fran- 
cis Berrian  and  doubtless  of  Francis  Berrian's  creator 
also.'' 

The  minister  of  a  Massachusetts  church,  even  after 
the  Revolution,  was  a  great  man  among  his  parish- 
ioners in  almost  all  instances;  when  he  served  one 
church,  as  Reverend  Eliab  Stone  did  the  North  Read- 
ingchurch,  formore  than  three  score  years,  1761-1822, 
he  became  a  power  in  the  lives  of  his  parishioners  that 
is  little  known  in  these  days  of  the  itinerant.  Into  Mr. 
Stone's  parish  during  the  school  days  of  Timothy  and 
his  cousin  James, "David  Everett,  a  school  master  from 
Dartmouth  college,"  came  to  the  central  school  of 
North  Reading,  and  "created  a  thirst  for  knowledge 

^*  Flint,  Timothy.  Lectures  upon  Natural  History,  Geology,  Chemistry, 
the  application  of  Steam  and  interesting  Discoveries  in  the  Arts,  p.  A'iii. 

^^  Flint,  Timothy.  Francis  Berrian,  or  the  Mexican  Patriot,  vol.  i,  130, 
>3i- 


YOUTH  AND  EDUCATION  29 

which  distinguished  that  generation  from  all  that  pre- 
ceded and  that  have  since  been  born  there."  The  in- 
fluence of  this  teacher  together  with  that  of  the  min- 
ister and  his  son  Micah,  a  tutor  in  Harvard  College 
and  later  a  minister,  made  what  Dr.  James  Flint 
thought  might  not  ''unfitly  be  called  the  Augustan  age 
of  scholarship  and  learning  in  North  Reading." 
''The  result  of  the  impulse  given  to  the  youthful  mind 
of  the  place  was,  that  five  individuals  of  that  small 
parish  and  two  from  the  West  Parish  were  simulta- 
neously members,  six  of  Harvard,  and  one  of  Dart- 
mouth college."'^ 

The  school  was  in  the  building  across  the  green 
from  the  meeting  house.  This  building  had  once 
been  the  meeting  house  and  was  removed  from  that 
site  in  1752  to  make  room  for  its  successor.  This  old 
schoolhouse  was  used  later  for  a  grocery  store  and 
then  for  a  carpenter  shop.  It  was  still  standing  in 
1903.  The  meeting  house  of  Timothy's  time  and  that 
of  his  cousin  and  friend,  James,  was  removed  in  1829 
for  a  new  building,  which  still  stands,  being  owned  by 
the  town  and  the  Universalist  Society^'  and  used  for 
school  and  lodge  purposes.^* 

In  the  Western  Monthly  Review  we  have  Flint's 

^^  Flint,  James.  Historical  Address,  delivered  at  the  Bi-Centennial  Cele- 
bration of  the  Incorporation  of  old  Toivn  of  Reading,  May  29,  1844,  38-4i- 

1^  In  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century,  the  Universalist  church 
succeeded  to  the  propertj'  of  the  old  Parish  Church  in  North  Reading.  The 
Unitarian  Churches  usually  fell  heir  to  the  Parish  Church  in  most  of  the 
eastern  Massachusetts  parishes  where  there  was  a  division  between  the 
liberal  and  orthodox  parties.  In  North  Reading  the  orthodox  partj^  organized 
the  Union  Congregational  Church  in  1836. 

1^  See  George  W.  Hinman's  "History"  in  Semi-Centennial  Souvenir  of 
North  Reading,  1853-1903. 


30  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

description  of  the  village  church  and  minister  of  his 
youth : 

Our  village  had  but  one  church,  and  he  who  occupied  it,  was 
as  an  angel  in  the  golden  candlestick,  a  man  of  real  and  deep  rev- 
erence, living  in  the  hearts  and  affections  of  the  people,  his  goings 
out  and  comings  in,  noted,  not  for  calumnious  scrutiny,  but  from 
filial  veneration.  Those  were  not  the  days  of  the  reign  of  a 
hundred  angry  and  polemic  sects.  Religion  was  understood  to 
be  a  matter  of  practise  and  good  feeling;  and  the  theories  by  which 
good  men  became  religious  were  little  investigated,  the  people 
being  more  concerned  to  gather  good  fruit,  than  to  search  out 
the  elementary  principles  of  its  origin  and  development. 

This  picture  has  added  color  from  the  keen  regret 
of  Mr.  Flint,  writing  in  1829  or  1830,  when  he  said, 
''The  same  village  now  has  its  rival  spires  of  temples 
dedicated  in  form  to  the  Prince  of  Peace.     .     .     "  ^^ 

In  one  of  the  stories  we  have  more  of  Flint's  early 
experiences  in  the  village  church: 

I  see  my  father  at  the  head,  and  my  mother  and  the  rest  of  the 
family,  according  to  their  ages,  following  each  other's  steps 
through  those  delightful  meadows,  as  we  went  up  to  the  house 
of  God  in  company.  I  see  even  now  the  brilliance  of  the 
meadow-pink,  and  I  seem  to  hear  the  note  of  the  lark,  startled 
and  soaring  from  our  path.  There  is  the  slow  and  limpid 
stream,  in  which  I  have  angled  and  bathed  a  thousand  times. 
There  was  the  hum  of  the  bees  on  the  fragrant,  white  balls  of 
the  meadow  button-wood,  which  formed  an  impervious  tangle 
on  the  verge  of  the  stream.  Each  of  the  boys  had  his  nosegay 
of  pond  lilies,  with  their  brilliant  white  and  yellow  cups,  their 
exquisite  and  ambrosial  fragrance,  and  their  long  and  twined 
stems.  Each  of  the  girls  had  her  bonnet  and  breast  decked  with 
a  shower  of  roses.  Well,  too,  do  I  remember  the  venerable 
minister,  with  his  huge  white  wig,  his  earnest  voice,  and  an 
authority,   at  once  patriarchal   and   familiar.     The  small   and 

19  Jf'gstern  Monthly  Reviei'.;  vol.    iii,    369. 


YOUTH  AND  EDUCATION  31 


rustic  church  was  filled  to  overflowing  with  those,  who  had 
there  received  baptism,  and  who  expected  to  repose  with  their 
fathers  in  the  adjoining  consecrated  enclosure.  And  there,  op- 
posite to  the  church,  was  the  village  schoolhouse,  one  of  those 
thousand  nurseries  of  New  England's  greatness.  Dear  remem- 
brances! How  often  ye  visit  my  di-eams  in  the  desolate  land 
of  the  stranger.-" 

There  is  no  record  of  Timothy's  name  among  the 
confirmed  members  of  the  North  Reading  Church. 
He  left  home  for  school  at  fifteen  years  of  age  and  it  is 
likely  that  his  formal  church  relations  began  after 
that  time. 

The  Harvard  Class  Book  for  the  Class  of  1800 '' 
says  that  Timothy  fitted   for  college  under  David 
Everett  in  the  North  Reading  Grammar  School  and  at^ 
Phillips  Academy,  Andover.     From  the  Bio  graphically 
Catalogue  of  the  Academy  we  learn  that  he  was  a  stu-' 
dent  there  in  1795.     He  entered  Harvard  in  1796  and 
graduated  with  his  class  in  1800.     His  old  pastor,  andj 
the  pastor's  son  also,  were  Harvard  men,  and  it  was  aj 
natural  step  for  him  to  go  to  Cambridge.     His  most 
intimate  friend,  his  cousin  James  Flint,  was  two  years 
behind  him  at  Harvard,  though  one  year  his  senior. 
He  mentions  him  later  as  his  college  friend  as  well  as 
the  friend  of  his  boyhood.     The  class  historian  has  an 
entry    about    Timothy    that    was    never    finished: 
^'Chummed  with ." 

In  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society's  Proceed- 
ings'^ it  is  said  that  he  was  a  member  of  a  company 
which  gave  a  Greek  play,  at  time  of  graduation.    We 

•^Francis  Berrian,  vol.  i,  15,  i6. 

21  Manuscript  in  Library  of  Harvard  University. 

2-  Massachusetts  Historical  Society  Proceedings,  first  series,  vol.  x,  52. 


j2  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

know  from  later  remarks  in  his  own  writings  that  he 
was  unusually  devoted  to  the  classics  and  to  French. 
But  it  is  rather  strange  that  we  have  no  direct  word 
from  Flint  in  all  the  mass  of  his  writings  about  his 
experiences  at  Harvard.  One  feels  however,  that 
when  Mr.  Flint  is  describing  Francis  Berrian's  im- 
pressions at  Harvard  there  is  enough  of  his  own  expe- 
rience inwrought,  to  give  us  a  fair  understanding  of 
what  that  period  of  his  life  contributed  to  the  future 
man.     He  says: 

Of  the  character  that  I  formed,  of  the  impressions  that  I 
received  at  that  rich  and  noble  institution,  I  am  not,  perhaps,  an 
adequate  judge.  .  .  The  arrangements  of  that  important  in- 
stitution are  abundantly  calculated  to  call  forth  emulation,  but 
I  saw  that  emulation  too  often  accompanied  with  the  baseness  of 
envy.  I  well  remember,  that  here  I  first  felt  the  "whip  of 
scorpions,"  of  disappointed  ambition  and  mortified  pride.  My 
fellow  students  sometimes  received  marks  of  approbation  which 
were  denied  rae,  and  which,  I  had  an  inward  conviction,  be- 
longed to  me,  as  justly  as  to  them.  My  inward  tortures  were 
increased  by  making  the  discovery,  that  I  was  actually  beginning 
to  be  envious.  It  was  a  most  self-abasing  scrutiny,  that  taught 
me  this.  I  made  a  great  efifort,  and  I  flatter  myself,  that  I  tore 
up  this  pernicious  branch  by  the  roots,  and  cast  it  from  me  for- 
ever.-* 

Mr.  Flintwouldhavebeen  very  far  from  saying  this 
last  thing  about  himself,  but  to  the  friends  of  his  later 
years  and  the  unbiased  judgment  of  the  historian  it 
seems  like  an  unveiling  of  the  early  struggles  which 
produced  the  rarely  unselfish  and  generous  soul  of  the 
missionary  and  author. 

There  is  also  a  description  of  what  must  have  been 
Timothy  Flint's  early  habits  as  a  student,  in  the  same 
passage  as  quoted  above  when  he  describes  Francis 

-'•'  Fraticis  Berrian,  vol.  i,  17. 


YOUTH  AND  EDUCATION  33 

Berrian  as  being  in  his  college  days,  of  sedentary  habit, 
reading  incessantly,  and  devouring  everything  that 
came  in  his  way.  The  reading  he  calls  ill  arranged, 
judged  by  the  better  scholars.  He  was  given  to 
dreaming  with  his  eyes  open.  Of  him  Mr.  Flint  says 
that  he  delved  into  the  deepest  mysteries  of  life  and 
"investigated  with  a  tormenting  eagerness  the  evi- 
dences for  an  eventful  hereafter."  This  last  is  a 
marked  trait  of  the  later  life  of  Mr.  Flint.  Francis 
Berrian  read  also  the  unbelieving  wits  and  historians; 
but  he  antidoted  them  with  works  of  the  immortals 
who  have  written  on  revealed  and  natural  religion. 
From  these  he  came  to  the  gospel.  He  says:  "I 
placed  before  my  mind  the  simple  grandeur  of  Him 
of  Calvary."  "I  was  deeply  struck  with  the  tender 
and  afifectionate  spirit  of  the  apostles."  This  con- 
verse with  the  gospel  served  to  curb  the  ambition 
for  greatness  which  was  strong  within  him  and  gave 
to  him  as  an  ideal  for  life,  that  which  should  be  the 
most  quiet.  Even  the  pillar  saints  of  the  early  church 
appealed  to  him  for  emulation  in  spirit.  At  his 
graduation,  Timothy  Flint  tells  us  of  his  hero,  that  he 
was  extravagantly  fond  of  books  of  voyages  and  of 
travels.  He  disliked  the  cities  and  delighted  to  im- 
agine himself  in  the  position  of  Robinson  Crusoe. 
Again  he  dreamed  of  himself  with  his  father's  family 
located  in  the  boundless  prairies  of  the  west;  and  again 
floating  down  from  the  "head-spring  of  the  Missouri 
to  the  ocean,"  or  about  to  follow  "the  intrepid  Clark 
and  Mackenzie  over  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the 
Western  sea."  "*  All  this  must  have  been  a  part  of  Mr. 
Flint's  own  college  life. 

^*  Francis  Berrian,  vol.  i,  17-20. 


34  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

It  is  probable  that  Timothy  Flint  had  decided  to 
enter  the  ministry  while  in  college.  Dr.  James  Flint 
says,  that  he  began  the  study  of  theology  immediately 
after  graduation.  The  Harvard  Class  Book  for  the 
Class  of  iSoo  informs  us  that  he  taught  an  academy 
for  one  year  at  Cohasset,  and  preached  for  a  time  at 
Marblehead.  It  is  probable  that  he  spent  the  first 
year  after  graduation  in  teaching,  and  in  the  study  of 
theology.  At  Cohasset,  Reverend  Jacob  Flint  ( Har- 
vard. 1 794) ,  Timothy's  cousin  and  an  older  brother  of 
Dr.  James  Flint,  was  pastor  from  January,  1798  until 
October,  1835.  The  only  item  of  interest  which  we 
have  concerning  Timothy's  short  time  at  Marblehead, 
was  that  here,  July  12,  1802,  he  married  his  wife, 
Abigail  Hubbard,  daughter  of  Reverend  Ebenezer 
Hubbard  and  a  relative  of  Joseph  Peabody."  Pea- 
body  was  a  wealthy  Salem  shipping  merchant  who 
was  always  to  follow  Mr.  Flint  with  deep  interest  and, 
in  the  hours  of  the  family's  extreme  need,  with  sub- 
stantial aid. 

Having  had  two  years  for  the  study  of  theology  and 
some  little  experience  in  preaching,  the  young  man 
was  ready  before  he  had  reached  his  twenty-second 
birthday,  for  a  settlement.  This  opportunity  was 
offered  to  him  in  the  parish  of  Lunenburg,  then  a  part 
of  the  town  of  Fitchburg,  and  forty  miles  northwest 
of  Boston. 


^'^  For  items  in  this  paragraph  see  Encyclopedia  Americana:  Supplemen- 
tary Volume,  270,  271 ;  Bigelow,  E.  V.  Narrative  History  of  Cohasset,  506 ; 
and  Cohasset  Toii>n  Records. 

The  date  of  Abigail  Hubbard's  baptism  is  Oct.  9,   1785. 


11.    THE  EARLY  MINISTRY  IN  NEW 
ENGLAND 

As  a  candidate  for  the  pastorate  Mr.  Flint  was  en- 
gaged at  Lunenburg  for  four  Sabbaths,  "i8th  April 
to  9th  May,  1802,  inclusive."  Services  were  to  begin 
at  half  past  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning  and  at  half  past 
one  in  the  afternoon.  Then  he  was  engaged  for  one 
more  Sabbath.  After  his  fifth  Sabbath  with  them  a 
town  warrant  was  issued,  May  sixteenth,  in  order  that 
the  town  might  give  Mr.  Flint  a  call.  On  the  tenth 
of  May  the  town  had  concurred  with  the  church -by 
the  selectmen  probably- and  was  ready  thus  far  for  the 
formal  call.  But  there  was  a  long  squabble  about  the 
settlement  and  salary.  The  call  was  "reconsidered" 
and  renewed.  During  this  time  Mr.  Flint  it  seems 
was  on  the  field  and  supplying  the  pulpit.'*^ 

The  call,  as  finally  agreed  upon,  offered  Mr.  Flint 
*'one  thousand  dollars  for  his  comfortable  settlement 
and  an  annual  salary  of  four  hundred  dollars."  The 
opening  of  his  ministerial  career  upon  so  troubled  a 
sea  proved  a  prophecy  for  the  future. 

"On  his  acceptance"  continues  the  town  historian," 

-<' Letter  of  J.  A.  Litchfield,  Lunenburg,  Mass.,  Feb.  10,  1908,  in  the 
Boston  Public  Library. 

-"  Cunningham,  CJeorge  A.  .-/  History  of  the  Tozun  of  Lunenburg  in 
Massachusetts,  from  the  Original  Grant,  Dec.  7,  ///p  (-1875),  136-140. 
Manuscript  in  the  Lunenburg  Town  Librar3%  Mr.  Cunningham  died  in 
1875  and  had  not  completed  his  work  at  that  time. 


36  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

"the  town  chose  a  committee  to  decorate  the  pulpit  and 
secure  the  galleries  at  a  cost  of  one  hundred  dollars. 
Another  was  appointed  to  entertain  the  council  which 
was  invited  to  meet  on  the  sixth  of  October  for  the 
ordination  of  the  young  minister."  We  have  very 
brief  record  of  this  notable  event,  but  with  the  prepar- 
ations of  the  town,  the  number  of  ministers  and 
churches  invited,  it  ought  to  have  been,  and  doubtless 
was,  a  great  occasion  for  the  people  of  the  parish  and 
for  the  young  candidate.  The  North  Church  of 
Salem,  Reverend  Dr.  Barnard,  pastor,  at  a  meeting 
after  church.  Lord's  day  evening,  September  twenty- 
fifth,  "declined  to  send  their  elder  and  delegate  to  the 
ordination  council  of  Timothy  Flint  at  Lunenburg,"  "^ 
but  Doctor  Prince  and  the  old  First  Church  would  not 
treat  them  so.  The  North  Reading  Church  voted  on 
September  t\venty-sixth,  to  send  as  delegates  two  dea- 
cons and  two  lay  delegates,  one  of  the  latter  being  the 
father  of  the  candidate."^  The  old  pastor.  Reverend 
Eliab  Stone,  preached  the  sermon  which  was  printed 
and  sent  to  every  family  in  the  parish  of  Lunenburg. 
Reverend  Jacob  Flint  of  Cohasset  was  invited  and 
also  Reverend  Mr.  BuUard  of  Fitchburg,  whose  son, 
Judge  Bullard,  was  to  have  a  large  place  in  Timothy's 
life  in  the  southwest. 

The  town  historian""  tells  us  that  Mr.  Flint  was  in 
ill  health  much  of  the  time  during  his  tw^elve  year  pas- 
torate, and  that  there  was  "a  good  deal  of  difficulty  in 
collecting  his  salary."  At  the  request  of  Mr.  Flint 
the  town  voted,  November  20,  1809,  "that  there  shall 

28  Salem  North  Church  Records  in  Essex  Institute,  Salem. 

29  North  Reading  [Mass.]   Church  Records. 
20  Cunningham,  op.  cit. 


The  Parsonage  at  Lunenburg,  Massachusetts 

Slightly   altered   in   recent  years 


EARLY  MINISTRY  IN  NEW  ENGLAND  39 

be  but  one  service  each  Lord's  day."  This  looks  as 
though  it  was  a  concession  to  the  pastor's  physical 
weakness.     It  was  not,  however,  entirely  gracious. 

Dr.  James  Flint  tells  us  that  Mr.  Flint  carried 
on  a  little  farming-  the  "ministerial  lot"  of  those  times 
gave  encouragement  in  this  direction -and  cultivated 
a  taste  for  letters  and  chemistry.  This  latter  taste 
seems  to  have  been  one  of  several  causes  of  trouble. 
Some  of  his  more  ignorant  parishioners  thought  that 
the  minister's  devotion  to  his  laboratory  was  a  sign  of 
some  secret  and  sinful  end.  To  this  would  be  added 
their  suspicions  of  disloyalty  to  the  government  which 
the  "rabid"  democrat  felt  sure  was  in  the  breast  of  the 
federalist.  The  charge  of  counterfeiting  was  made 
and  it  seemed  so  serious  to  the  pastor  that  he  prose- 
cuted and  obtained  judgment  against  his  persecutor.^^ 
This  of  course  did  not  quiet  the  troubled  waters  of  the 
parish  life. 

The  Harvard  class  historian  tells  us  of  another  inci- 
dent, presumably  in  the  late  years  of  the  Lunenburg 
pastorate,  which  was  one  of  the  unsettling  influences. 
A  young  man  of  the  town,  who  bore  the  reputation  of 
a  reprobate,  died.  Mr.  Flint  began  his  funeral  ser- 
vice by  reading  one  of  Doctor  Watts's  hymns,  be- 
ginning: 

My. thoughts  on  awful  subjects  roll, 

Damnation,  and  the  dead. 

The  audience  was  so  shocked,  and  especially  the  rel- 
atives of  the  deceased,  that  they  never  forgave  the 
minister. 

Mr.  Flint's  plain  speaking  and  dealing  at  this  pe- 
riod of  his  life  is  quite  marked.  It  is  perhaps  one  of  the 

21  Timothj'  Flint,  in  Harvard  Class  Book  for  the  Class  of  iSoo. 


7  y  n 


40  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

reasons  for  his  classmate's  remark"'"  that  at  this  period 
he  was  little  versed  in  human  nature  or  gifted  in  social 
intercourse.  A  couple  of  stories,  apropos,  are  pre- 
served for  us  in  notes  in  the  Lunenburg  Library  copy 
of  the  Recollections  of  the  last  ten  years,  passed  in 
occasional  Residence  and  Journeyings  in  the  Vnlley  of 
the  Mississippi.  These  notes  were  made  by  Luther  G. 
Howard,  a  grandson  of  one  of  Mr.  Flint's  deacons, 
now  living  in  Reading,  Massachusetts.     He  says: 

At  one  time  Mr.  Flint  exchanged  with  the  Ashby  minister. 
My  grandfather  and  Mr.  Taylor  went  up  to  Ashby  to  hear  him 
preach.  He  would  not  speak  to  them,  being  displeased  at  their 
leaving  their  own  church  to  follow  him. 

At  another  time  one  of  Mr.  Flint's  neighbors  called  on  him 
and  told  him  what  some  of  the  people  were  saying  about  him. 
When  the  man  left  the  house,  the  minister  accompanied  him  to 
the  gate  and  pointing  to  a  place  beside  the  fence  said,  "When  you 
have  another  load  to  dump,  leave  it  there  and  don't  bring  it  into 
the  house.  "^ 

Mr.  Flint  was  "School  Committee"  for  three  dif- 
ferent years  and  for  the  last  two  years  of  his  pastorate 
he  was  a  trustee  of  Lawrence  Academy  at  Groton. 
He  is  charged  by  the  town  historian  ^^  with  being  care- 
less in  his  records.  He  made  return  of  marriages 
performed,  only  about  once  in  three  years  and  then  did 
not  give  the  dates.  The  birth  dates  of  his  own  chil- 
dren are  not  recorded  and  the  baptisms  of  only  two  of 
the  three  that  were  born  to  him  here:  Micah  Pea- 
body,  baptised  July  3,  1803,  Emeline  Hubbard,  bap- 
tised June  30,  1805.  Ebenezer  Hubbard,  according 
to  family  records,  was  born  January  19,  1808. 

The  earliest  sermon  that  we  have  by  Mr.  Flint  is 

^2  Harvard  Class  Book  for  the  Class  of  iSoo. 
33  Cunningham,  op.  (it. 


EARLY  MINISTRY  IN  NEW  ENGLAND  41 

that  preached  at  the  ordination  of  his  friend,  Ebenezer 
Hubbard,  Mrs.  Flint's  brother,  to  the  Second  Church 
and  Society  in  Newbui-y,  May  11,  1808.  It  is 
much  longer  than  his  other  sermons  and  addresses 
preserved  in  print.  It  gives  the  impression  of  being 
too  conscious  of  the  occasion.  In  consequence  it  is 
formal  and  a  little  pedantic.  It  is  lacking  in  the 
passionate  and  human  interest  that  usually  character- 
izes his  expression.  His  theme  is  the  motive  to 
and  the  manner  of  the  gospel  ministry.  He  takes 
a  wide  range  over  the  field  of  practical  theology. 
There  are  no  incidents  or  stories  to  illustrate,  only 
passing  references  to  the  parables.  There  is  very 
little  of  the  flowing  rhetoric  so  common  in  his  writ- 
ings. There  is  hardly  a  suggestion  that  looks  in  the 
direction  of  the  heresies  and  controversies  of  the  times. 
There  is  often  a  clear  consciousness  of  the  deeper 
meanings  of  the  forms  being  observed  and  a  desire  that 
his  hearers  shall  realize  that  the  things  which  they 
now  behold  are  evanescent.^* 

During  this  pastorate  Mr.  Flint  published  a  sermon 
on  Immortality.  This  was  always  a  favorite  theme. 
Mr.  W.  D.  Gallagher  says  this  sermon  was  written 
when  Flint  was  about  twenty-one  years  of  age."  No 
copy  of  this  sermon  has  been  found. 

The  town  historian,  Mr.  Cunningham  in  his  His- 
tory of  Lunenburg  has  preserved  the  Covenant  which 
was  "adopted  and  used  by  Mr.  Flint"  in  Lunenburg. 

'■^*  Flint,  Timothy.     Sermon  at  the  Ordinatio7i  of  Re-v.  E.  Hubbard. 

^^  Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.  iii,  37.  In  an  article  on  Flint,  Mr.  Gallagher 
says,  "The  last  work,  we  believe,  which  he  published  before  the  Ten  Years' 
Residence  was  one  entitled  Arguments  natural,  moral  and  religious,  for  the 
Immortality  of  tlie  Soul,  written  about  the  time  of  attaining  to  his  majority." 


42  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

It  is  given  here  as  an  indication  of  the  undogmatic  and 
evangelical  tendency  of  the  man: 

You  believe  in  One  Supreme  Eternal  God,  and  you  devote 
yourself  to  him  in  an  everlasting  covenant. 

You  believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  Eternal  Son  of 
God,  and  you  rely  on  him  alone  for  Salvation. 

You  believe  in  the  Holy  Spirit,  the  Sanctifier  and  Comforter, 
and  the  necessity  of  His  Holy  influence  to  your  Salvation. 

You  receive  the  Holy  Scriptures  as  the  rule  of  your  Faith  and 
Conduct,  and  you  promise  to  obey  the  Will  of  God,  therein  made 
known ;  and  to  submit  yourself  to  the  government  and  discipline 
of  Christ  in  this  church  so  long  as  Providence  shall  continue  you 
among  us. 

This  you  covenant  and  promise. 

Then  follows  the  pledge  of  fellowship  on  the  part  of 
the  church.  There  is  no  creed  used.  It  would  seem 
to  indicate  the  position  which  Mr.  Flint  always  en- 
deavored to  hold,  of  standing  by  the  universal  stand- 
ards of  the  church  and  avoiding  all  sectarian  creeds 
and  forms. 

There  is  another  sermon  of  Mr.  Flint  which  was 
preached  at  Leominster,  Massachusetts,  on  the  Lord's 
day,  January  i,  1815,  which  shows  the  same  practical 
tendency.  He  is  not  at  all  concerned  with  theology, 
but  very  much  with  the  practical  issues  of  every  day 
life.  He  takes  account  of  the  unusual  number  of 
deaths  in  the  parish  during  the  previous  year.  There 
had  been  fifty,  which  numbered  also  their  minister 
who  had  served  them  for  fifty  years.^® 

Early  in  the  year  18 14,  Mr.  Flint  requested  an  in- 
crease of  salary.  The  matter  had  been  discussed 
before,  and  the  minister  felt  very  strongly  that  he  was 

36  Flint,  Timothy.  A  Sermon  delivered  in  Leominster  at  the  Commence- 
ment of  the  Year,  Lord's  Day,  Jan.  I,  1815. 


EARLY  MINISTRY  IN  NEW  ENGLAND  43 

not  being  justly  treated  in  this  regard.  That  he  had  a 
party  in  the  parish  of  like  opinion  is  indicated  by  the 
fact  that  his  successor,  Reverend  David  Damon,  was 
settled  on  a  six  hundred  dollar  salary,  instead  of  the 
four  hundred  paid  Mr.  Flint.  But  there  was  such 
hostility  to  Mr.  Flint  that  when  the  question  of  increas- 
ing his  salary  came  up  in  town  meeting,  the  decision 
was  against  him.  On  the  seventh  of  April,  Mr.  Flint 
addressed  a  letter  to  his  constituency  asking  for  a  dis- 
missal and  giving  his  reasons  for  doing  so.  He  says 
he  might  have  given  many,  but  they  would  excite  use- 
less and  unavailing  irritation.  He  wished  to  part  in 
love  and  in  prayer  for  their  growth  in  grace.  He  is 
compelled  to  give  some  reasons  however  to  justify  so 
extreme  a  step  on  his  part.  He  is  convinced  that 
under  existing  circumstances  he  can  do  no  further 
good  in  the  parish,  and  this  conviction  has  undermined 
his  health.  His  support  is  not  sufficient  for  his  needs 
and  in  consequence  he  is  unduly  tempted  by  his  de- 
pendent condition  "to  be  timid  in  rebuking  the  evil,  or 
so  slavish  through  fear  of  offending,  as  to  treat  the  holy 
and  the  vile  alike."  From  most  of  the  people  he  had 
during  his  twelve  years  among  them,  "in  the  morning 
and  prime  of  his  life"  received  proofs  of  kindness  and 
affection  which  would  endure  while  memory  re- 
mained to  him.  "Though  separated  here  .  .  . 
we  shall  soon  be  together  again  in  a  world  where  there 
is  no  slander."  Again  in  closing  his  rather  lengthy 
letter  he  says:  "While  with  a  feeble  constitution  and 
miserable  health,  I  embark  once  more,  with  my  fam- 
ily, upon  a  stormy  world,  I  ask  an  interest  in  your 


44  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

prayers   that   I   may  be  guided   into   all   truth   and 
duty.""' 

A  glimpse  i)t  the  Lunenburg  pastor's  experience 
with  late  comers  to  church  and  his  other  trials  also,  are 
set  forth  in  the  story  of  Arthur  C/enning:''  In  George 
Mason,  tlw  Young  BacksicooJsman ;  or  "Don't  give 
up  the  Ship,"'  which  is  the  most  autobiographic  of 
Mr.  Flint's  stories,  there  is,  with  a  few  changes  of 
figures  and  names,  much  of  the  author's  Lunenburg 
experiences  put  into  a  picture  which  must  have  been 
taken  out  of  his  diary  rather  than  evolved  from  his 
imagination.     He  says: 

Few  of  my  readers  would  coniprehend«the  peculiar  trials  of  a 
minister  in  such  a  place,  or  would  be  able  to  understand  the  com- 
plication of  minute  difficulties  and  vexations,  which,  during  a 
ministry  of  sixteen  years,  in  a  countrj-  village,  had  broken  down 
his  health  and  spirits,  and  finally  induced  him  to  ask  a  dismission 
from  his  people,  and  to  move  to  this  distant  and  unknown  country. 
His  parish  comprehended  every  shade  of  opinion  in  religion  and 
politics.  Embittered  parties  and  eternal  disputations  were  the 
consequence.  In  attempting  to  keep  clear  of  all,  the  pastor  be- 
came embroiled  with  all.  Both  himself  and  his  wife  had  been 
reared  delicately.  The  salary  Mas  small,  and  the  family  increas- 
ing. He  became  poor,  and  obnoxious  both  to  the  religious  and 
political  parties;  and  after  sixteen  years  of  the  prime  of  his  life 
spent  among  them,  admitting,  the  while,  that  he  was  exemplary, 
of  good  feeling,  learned  and  eloquent,  they  refused  him  in  town 
meeting,  a  request  to  add  something  to  his  salary.  In  disgust 
he  asked  a  dismission,  and  it  was  granted.  .  .  In  the  progress 
of  his  vexations  in  his  parish,  he  had  become,  perhaps  I  ought  to 
say,  unreasonably  disgusted  with  the  condition  of  a  minister  in 
that  country.  .  .  He  had  been  accustomed  for  years  to  allow 
his  thoughts  to  expatiate  in  fabricating  the  romance  of  pastoral 

'"  Cunningham,  o/>.  cit.,  136-140. 

"^  Flint,  Timothy.     The  Life  arid  AdveJitjms  of  Arthur  Cleniilng,  vol. 
ii,  146-14.8. 


EARLY  MINISTRY  IN  NEW  ENGLAND  45 

enjoyments  and  pursuits.  By  accident  the  romances  of  Imlay  and 
Chateaubriand,  and  other  writers  equally  historical,  presenting 
such  illusive  pictures  of  the  southern  and  western  country,  had 
fallen  into  his  hands.     During  the  long  winter  evenings, 

When  fast  came  down  the  snow, 
And  keenly  o'er  the  wide  heath  the  bitter  blast  did  blow, 

this  romance  of  freedom  from  the  vexations  of  a  minister's  life, 
and  the  miseries  of  political  and  religious  altercation  in  a  pop- 
ulous village,  and  escape  from  the  inclement  climate,  to  a  country 
where  he  might  find  health,  freedom,  solitude,  rich  land,  and 
independence,  formed  in  his  imagination.  Once  formed  there, 
all  his  reading  and  reasonings,  all  the  opposing  arguments,  all  the 
remonstrances  of  his  friends  and  each  renewed  vexation,  embel- 
lished his  romance,  and  confirmed  liis  purpose.  His  wife,  at  first, 
argued  gently  against  the  plan ;  but  she  loved  her  husband,  and  his 
oft  repeated,  and  eloquently  painted  views  of  his  romance,  finally 
presented  it  to  her  mind  as  a  reality. ^'^ 

Mr.  Flint  at  Lunenburg,  was  beyond  the  zone  of 
active  theological  disturbances.  The  Trinitarian 
Party  here  did  not  separate  from  the  old  parish  until 
1835.  Political  difficulties  far  more  than  religious 
disturbed  him  in  these  years.  There  are  some  indi- 
cations, however,  that  he  was  not  without  his  troubles, 
and  his  part  in  the  theological  tempests  of  the  time. 
In  the  dedication  of  his  Recollections^''  to  Dr.  James 
Flint,  he  mentions  as  an  indication  of  the  strength  of 
their  friendship,  that  it  has  survived  the  "still  more 
fatal  influence  of  differing  opinion."  Doctor  Flint 
was  an  early  and  avowed  Unitarian.  It  is  significant 
too,  not  only  of  troubles  but  of  the  peace  loving  man, 

"9  See  pages  15-16. 

*o  Flint,  Timothy.  Recollections  of  the  Icift  ten  years,  passed  in  occasioiral 
Residences  and  Jonrneyings  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  from  Pittsburg 
and  the  Missouri,  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  from  Florida  to  the  Spanish 
frontier;  in  a  scries  of  Letters  to  the  Rev.  James  Flint,  of  Salem,  Massaclin- 
setts,  I,  line  9. 


46  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

that  in  all  his  years  at  Lunenburg  Mr.  Flint  was  not 
once  a  delegate  to  the  Massachusetts  General  Asso- 
ciation/' These  disturbances  were  doubtless  in  the 
way  of  a  settlement  in  New  England  and  a  factor  in 
driving  him  to  the  far  west  where  he  fondly  hoped 
to  escape  from  theological  controversies. 

Two  more  items  are  given  by  the  Lunenburg 
records  as  presented  in  the  Lunenburg  manuscript 
history  by  Mr.  Cunningham,  and  then  they  are  silent 
as  to  Mr.  Flint  and  his  affairs.  A  council  was  held 
June  6,  1 8 14,  which  dismissed  the  pastor.  On  Sep- 
tember 3,  1 81 5,  one  month  before  the  westward  jour- 
ney began,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Flint  were  dismissed  from 
the  membership  of  the  Lunenburg  church  to  the 
church  in  Salem.  This  was,  of  course,  the  First 
Church,  and  it  is  probable  that  they  remained  mem- 
bers of  this  church  during  their  wanderings  in  the 
west  and  until  they  were  settled  in  Cincinnati.  They 
do  not  appear  to  have  lived  in  Salem.  Their  home 
was  in  Lunenburg  from  the  time  Mr.  Flint  resigned 
the  pastorate  there  until  they  began  the  western  jour- 
ney-some fifteen  months  later. 

On  the  twenty-fifth  of  November,  18 14,  there  is  a 
letter  of  Mr.  Flint  written  from  Lunenburg  to  Rev- 
erend Mr.  Lowell,  Boston.  This  was  most  likely, 
Reverend  Chas.  Lowell,  father  of  James  Russell 
Lowell,  and  a  classmate  of  Flint.  He  was  then  pastor 
of  the  West  Church,  Boston.  Mr.  Lowell  had  writ- 
ten Flint  about  some  family  history  connected  with 
Lunenburg  and  did  not  know  that  Flint  had  resigned 

41  Massachusetts  General  Association.  Minutes.  See  also  letter  of  Wm. 
H.  Cobb,  Boston,  Jan.  4,  1908,  in  the  Library  of  Harvard  Universit}'. 


EARLY  MINISTRY  IN  NEW  ENGLAND  47 


the  pastorate  there.     Mr.  Flint  informs  him  of  this 

fact  and  explains  it  to  him  by  writing: 

My  people  were  democratic,  and  the  mania  of  democracy  al- 
ways ran  high  here.  It  rendered  the  last  years  of  my  residence 
here  very  uncomfortable.  Starvation  and  insult  exhausted  my 
health.  It  has  been  convalescing,  since  I  left  here.  I  have  been  em- 
ployed, as  I  observed,  the  past  summer  and  autumn  on  a  mission 
[for  the  Massachusetts  Society  for  promoting  Christian  Knowl- 
edge] to  the  county  of  Rockingham  in  N.H.  I  am  now  here,  and 
unemployed.  I  contemplate  taking  a  school.  I  presume  you 
have  a  surfeit  of  applications  to  recommend  applicants  for  a 
school.  Could  I  obtain  a  small  private  school,  I  could  at  least 
promise  fidelity.  Perhaps  I  might  add,  that  in  former  time,  I 
had  reputation,  as  an  instructor.  If  you  would  take  the  trouble 
to  enquire,  whether  any  such  school  might  be  had  in  Boston,  or 
the  vicinity,  you  would  confer  a  great  favor  upon,  dear  sir,  yours 
affectionately  T.  Flint.''^ 

In  the  Account  of  the  Massachusetts  Society  for 
promoting  Christian  Knowledge,*^  there  are  extracts 
from  the  journal  of  Mr.  Flint,  made  during  this  mis- 
sion in  New  Hampshire,  to  which  he  refers  in  his 
letter  to  Reverend  Mr.  Lowell:  "Sept.  5,  Implored 
God  for  strength,  and  heart  to  be  faithful ;  and  set  out 
to  commence  missionary  labors."  He  spent  three 
weeks  at  Kingston  and  six  weeks  at  Raymond.  These 
places  had  pastorless  churches,  decadent  from  sec- 
tarian divisions  and  other  causes.  He  preached  thir- 
ty-one times  in  the  nine  weeks,  administered  the  sacra- 
ment twice,  baptized  two   children,   instructed   and 

*2  This  letter  which  is  in  the  Boston  Public  Library,  manuscript  depart- 
ment, has  an  interesting  endorsement  evidently  made  by  Charles  Lowell,  as 
follows:  "From  Timothy  Flint  author  of  several  works  relating  to  the 
Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  etc.,  my  class  mate  and  friend.     C.  L." 

"Lived   afterwards   in   Cincinnati.     C.   L." 

^^  See  pages  53,  54,  64,  first  note,  66. 


48  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

catechised  individually  two  hundred  and  forty  chil- 
dren, and  prayed  with  ten  sick. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  he  did  not  remain  with  this 
society.  Its  Account  shows  a  strangely  sectarian  view 
of  its  work  as  a  missionary  society.  The  "congrega- 
tional church"  [spelled  with  a  small  "c"]  is  the  "reg- 
ular order."  Baptists  of  all  sorts,  Methodists,  Uni- 
versalists,  "'Christyans  or  Smithites"  are  all  regarded 
as  sectarians  and  their  errors  and  ignorance  are  fully 
described.  They  are  all  regarded  with  the  barely 
tolerant  air  of  the  "churchman"  of  all  ages.  Still 
further,  this  society  felt  concerned  for  the  evil  done 
by  those  who  held  to  high  Calvinism  even  though  they 
were  of  the  "regular  order."  A  reading  of  this  old 
missionary  report  w^ould  prove  an  excellent  tonic  for 
persons  depressed  by  the  present  day  denomination- 
alism." 

After  this  date  Mr.  Flint  held  a  second  commission 
from  the  Massachusetts  Society  for  promoting  Chris- 
tian Knowledge,  and  received  a  third  commission  in 
May,  which  however  he  did  not  use.*^     He  is  said  to 

**  One  of  the  missionary  reports,  and  not  at  all  peculiar,  which  is  reported 
in  the  Account  as  evidence  of  the  helpful  character  of  the  society's  work  runs 
as  follows:  "A  few  Calvinistic  Baptists  and  Freewillers  are  of  upright  and 
unblamable  character;  but  very  few  of  the  latter.  As  a  body,  they  may  be 
considered,  as  the  scum  of  the  earth  the  filth  of  creation.  Lying,  drunkenness, 
uncleanness,  sabbathbreaking,  fraud,  and  theft  may  be  found  among  them, 
without  close  scrutiny;  they  are  the  prominent  feature  of  their  devotees, 
especially  of  the  Christyans  {^sic^  or  Smithites.  The  Methodists  are  better 
in  some  respects ;  for,  when  they  can  no  longer  hide  the  abominable  wicked- 
ness of  their  adherents,  they  will  shut  them  out  of  their  societies;  and  such 
generally  attach  themselves  to  the  Smithites,  and  are  cordially  received.  The 
Smithites,  Freewillers,  and  Methodists,  though  opposed  to  each  ether,  and 
always  quarreling;  yet  thej'  perfectly  agree,  when  there  is  any  wall  to  pull 
down  (as  they  call  it)  or,  in  other  words,  a  congregational  church  to  destroy," 

71- 

*^  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint  to  Rev.  Abel  Flint,  secretary  of  the  Missionary 


EARLY  MINISTRY  IN  NEW  ENGLAND  49 

have  labored  in  Massachusetts.  His  work  under  the 
second  commission  was  probably  in  the  western  part 
ot  the  state  and  in  New  York,  where  the  society  had  a 
mission  in  Essex  County.  The  home  scene  of  Arthur 
Clenning  is  located  in  New  York,  near  Lake  George, 
and  might  indicate  a  visit  by  Mr.  Flint  to  this  section. 
Another  indication  of  the  scene  of  his  labors  at  this 
time  is  a  remark  in  the  Recollections  when  speaking 
of  the  wildness  of  the  western  Indians,  and  comparing 
them  with  the  eastern  people  of  that  race.  He  says: 
"I  had,  as  you  know,  traveled  in  the  northern  parts  of 
the  United  States,  and  had  seen  the  Indians  of  Canada 
and  New  York."'"' 


Society  of  Connecticut,  written  from  Lunenburg,  Jan.  23,  1815,  and  found  in 
the  archives  of  the  societj',  Congregational  House,  Hartford. 
^*  Flint,  Timoth}^     Recollections  of  the  Last  Ten  Years,  93. 


III.  THE  MISSION  TO  THE  FAR  WEST 

The  next  word,  recorded  concerning  Timothy  Flint 
after  his  New  Year's  sermon  at  Leominster,  is  spoken 
by  him  at  the  same  place  on  the  Fourth  of  July  in  the 
year  1815.  It  is  an  oration  delivered  before  the  Wash- 
ington Benevolent  Society  of  Lancaster  and  Sterling 
and  of  Leominster  and  Fitchburg.  It  was  printed 
soon  after,  the  Society  requesting  Mr.  Flint  to  furnish 
a  copy  for  the  press.  It  is  one  of  the  important  papers 
pertaining  to  Mr.  Flint,  because  it  is  the  only 
political  document  we  have  in  the  early  period  of  his 
life  and  because  it  was  spoken  at  a  time  when  political 
passions  were  strong  in  New  England.  This  Society 
before  which  he  spoke  was  a  political  club  holding 
to  the  Federal  ideas.  Mr.  Flint  himself  was  a  Fed-^ 
eralist,  who,  as  we  have  seen,  had  found  it  uncom- 
fortable to  live  in  a  Democratic  community.  But 
there  is  very  little  of  a  partisan  nature  in  this  ad- 
dress, and  nothing  of  bitterness. 

In  his  review  of  the  Revolutionary  period,  the  days 
of  the  Confederation,  the  Constitutional  Convention 
and  the  administration  of  Washington,  Mr,  Flint  is 
enthusiastic  and  laudatory.  For  the  successors  of 
Washington,  he  has  little  praise  and  much  mild  criti- 
cism. Of  the  French  influence  he  is  jealous.  For  the 
future  of  the  nation  he  is  very  hopeful.  Concerning 
New  England  he  is  eloquent,  reminding  us  strongly  of 


52  TIMOTHY'    FLINT 

the  famous  eulogy  of  Massachusetts  by  Daniel  Web- 
ster in  his  "Reply  to  Hayne."  It  is  in  a  more  tender 
and  personal  key  but  it  has  the  same  sustained  elo- 
quence. If  it  had  been  fortunate  enough  to  have  got- 
ten into  the  school  readers '"  and  books  of  declamation, 
it  might  have  become  immortalized.     He  said: 

New  England,  land  of  my  forefathers,  whose  habits  are  so 
congenial,  whose  associations  are  so  dear  to  mj'  heart,  "when  I 
forget  thee,"  or  cease  to  speak  of  thee  with  filial  veneration,  "may 
my  right  hand  forget  her  cunning."  New  England  -  I  delight 
to  see  her  small  but  frequent  farms,  owned  by  enlightened,  inde- 
pendent and  virtuous  land-holders.  I  delight  more  in  the  verdure 
and  the  harvests,  won  by  laborious  cultivation  from  native  rough- 
ness and  sterility,  than  in  the  indolent  exuberance  of  nature.  I 
love  her  frequent  hills  and  dales,  and  the  transparent  beauty  and 
the  pleasant  murmur  of  her  rapid  hill-streams ;  and  would  not 
exchange  them  for  the  creeping  and  marshy  creeks,  that  wind 
lazily  through  an  uninteresting  and  boundless  plain.  I  admire 
the  firm  enclosures  of  her  farms,  of  materials  as  durable  and 
everlasting  as  I  wish  her  prosperity  to  be.  I  admire  her  frequent 
and  neat  schoolhouses,  and  the  courteous  bow  of  her  clean  and 
healthy  children  flocking  to  them.  And  most  of  all,  I  admire 
her  temples,  the  crowning  ornaments  of  her  villages;  and,  from 
the  multitudes  directing  their  steps  to  them  on  the  Sabbath,  I 
discern,  that  here  publick  sentiment  still  sanctifies  the  Sabbath 
of  our  God.  And  near  that  glorious  emblem  of  the  law,  justice 
and  order,  of  industry  and  temperance,  during  this  life,  and  of  a 
happy  immortality  beyond  it,  the  village  church,  I  survey  with 
solemn  pleasure  the  church-yard,  seen  at  the  same  view,  and  asso- 
ciating its  repose  with  the  immortal  hopes  of  the  temple,  where 
the  virtuous  "forefathers  of  our  hamlets  sleep."  *^ 

In  this  address  is  something  of  provincialism  when 
he  declaims  against  the  party  politics  of  the  times  for 

*^  Mr.  Flint's  article  on  the  effects  of  gambling  was  published  in  at  least 
one  edition  of  McGuffey's  Eclectic  Readers.  See  AVxy  Fifth  Eclectic  Reader 
(Cincinnati,   1866). 

^*  Oration  before  the  H'ashingtoii  Benevolent  Society,  July  4,  1815. 


THE  MISSION  TO  THE  FAR  WEST  53 

shutting  out  New  England  from  the  sea.  This  he 
thought,  together  with  false  pictures  of  "palaces,  and 
paradises,  and  spontaneous  wealth,  in  the  West"  was 
driving  the  hardy  sons  of  New  England  beyond  the 
mountains  until,  he  says: 

Our  dwellings,  our  school-houses  and  churches  will  have 
mouldered  to  ruins ;  our  grave-yards  be  overrun  with  shrub-oaks ; 
and  but  here  and  there  a  wretched  hermit,  true  to  his  paternal 
soil,  to  tell  the  tale  of  other  times. 

The  emigrants  that  have  gone  to  the  far  west  and 
south  will  feel,  he  thinks,  that: 

They  live  in  a  state  of  estrangedness  and  exile  from  all  that  is 
dear  to  them,  and  dream  incessantly  of  their  native  hills  and 
valleys.*^ 

There  is  nothing  provincial,  however,  in  Mr.  Flint's 
outlook  when  he  speaks  of  Napoleon,  escaped  from  his 
island  in  the  Mediterranean,  as:  "The  restless  dis- 
turber of  the  nations  .  .  .  consistent  but  in  one 
thing,  and  that  thing  perpetual  inconsistency."^" 

Though  he  is  lamenting  over  the  desolation  of  New 
England  by  the  great  western  movement  that  was  then 
gathering  such  headway;  though  he  is  pitying  the 
expatriated  sons  of  New  England  as  they  are  spread 
abroad  over  the  uninteresting  and  boundless  plains, 
and  dreaming  incessantly  of  their  native  hills  and  val- 
leys, still  we  are  hardly  surprised  that  he  is  about  to 
join  the  men  who,  "their  wives  and  little  ones  loaded 
into  waggons,  the  funeral  procession  of  New  Eng- 
land, advanced,  'with  measured  step  and  slow,'  to- 
wards the  Alleghany  hills.""' 

*"  Oration  before  the   H'ash'ington  Benevolent  Society,   19,  20. 
^^  —  Idem,    22. 
^'  —  Idem,  19. 


54  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

A  letter  dated  Lunenburg,  July  23,  18 15,  addressed 
to  Reverend  Abel  Flint,  secretary  of  the  Missionary 
Society  of  Connecticut,"'"  reveals  the  workaday  life  of 
Air.  Flint  far  better  than  his  Leominster  oration.  He 
had  been  considered  by  the  Society  as  a  candidate  for  a 
western  mission.  An  offer  was  extended  to  him 
through  Doctor  Morse."^^  Mr.  Flint  says  in  this  let- 
ter: 

I  have  long  contemplated  a  removal  with  my  family  to  the 
west\vard,  under  an  impression,  that  a  milder  climate  would  be 
beneficial  to  my  health.  An  object,  which  I  have  had  more 
especially  in  view,  has  been  to  establish  in  some  central  place  a 
religious  publication,  like  our  religious  monthly  papers;  except 
that  it  should  more  particularly  vindicate  our  literature,  charities 
and  institutions. 

He  believes  strongly  in  the  importance  of  this  enter- 
prise, but  appeals  to  the  "better  judgment"  of  the  sec- 
retary as  to  its  practicability.  He  desired  the  society 
to  give  him  a  commission  to  preach  in  the  Kentucky 
and  Ohio  River  regions  until  such  time  as  he  should 
become  acquainted  and  establish  himself  there  for  the 
carrying  out  of  his  special  plan.  He  says  he  has  the 
testimony  of  the  Massachusetts  Society  for  promoting 
Christian  Knowledge,  that  his  labors  have  been  as 
great  as  any  other  of  their  agents,  in  spite  of  his  feeble 
health,  and  that  he  now  holds  a  third  commission  from 
that  society,  given  to  him  the  last  May,  which  he  has 
not  used.  He  proposes  to  accept  the  offer  of  the  Con- 
necticut Missionary  Society,  though  the  compensa- 
tion is  to  be  less  than  that  of  the  Massachusetts  Society, 

^-  In  Congregational  House,  Hartford,  archives  of  the  Society. 

^3  Thi8  was  probabh'  Reverend  Dr.  Jedidiah  Morse,  1761-1826,  at  this 
time  secretary  of  the  Mass.  Soc.  for  promoting  Christian  Knowledge,  and  one 
of  the  founders  of  Andover  Theological  Seminarv. 


THE  MISSION  TO  THE  FAR  WEST  55 

if  he  may  be  allowed  to  take  his  family  with  him  and 
be  credited  with  sufficient  time  in  which  to  reach  his 
field.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  among  the  refer- 
ences that  he  offers  to  furnish,  are  some  from  the 
"most  respectable  orthodox  clergy  of  this  region."^* 

The  appointment  was  made  for  the  states  of  Ohio 
and  Kentucky.  He  was  commissioned  to  visit  such 
settlements  in  these  states  as  he  should  think  proper.^^ 

In  a  letter  written  the  fifteenth  of  August,  also  from 
Lunenburg,  Mr.  Flint  accepts  the  appointment  of  the 
Missionary  Society  of  Connecticut,  shrinking  from 
the  idea  of  so  much  responsibility,  but  "having  taken 
the  best  view  of  duty."     In  this  letter  he  says  further: 

I  propose  to  commence  my  journey  in  patriarchal  style,  taking 
my  wife  and  three  children  with  me.  May  I  go  with  the  sim- 
plicity of  heart,  the  confidence  in  God,  and  the  submission  to  his 
will,  of  a  patriarch.  Should  I  go  with  such  feelings,  though  it 
be  to  a  strange  and  distant  land,  and  not  knowing,  "whither  I 
go,"  He  will  protect  me,  and  make  us  useful,  and  suffer  us  to 
want  nothing,  that  is  necessary  for  us. 

In  a  month's  time  he  expected  to  be  in  Hartford  on 
his  westward  journey.  He  did  not,  however,  reach 
Hartford  as  early  as  he  had  planned.  He  spent  the 
Sabbath,  the  first  of  October,  there. 

With  the  beginning  of  the  trip  westward,  the  Recol- 
lections commence.  The  missionary  letters,  preserved 
in  the  Congregational  Library  of  Hartford,  are  also 
full,  and  the  process  of  selection  and  exclusion  is  em- 
barrassing. Mr.  Flint  sees  so  many  people  and  things 
that  are  strange  to  us  as  they  were  to  him,  and  he 

^■♦Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  Leominster,  July  23,  1815. 
^^  Seventeertt/t  Annual  Narrative  of  Missionary  Service  (Hartford,  iii6), 
«5. 


56  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

writes  about  them  so  entertainingly,  that  one  is  loath 
to  pass  by  much  that  can  not  be  put  into  these  pages. 
The  family  was  embarked  in  a  two  horse  wagon, 
with  such  of  their  household  effects  as  they  were  able 
to  carry.  On  the  fourth  of  October  they  left  the  ''land 
of  their  fathers"  and  the  next  day  crossed  the  Hudson 
at  Fishkill.  On  Sabbath,  October  eighth,  they  were 
at  Newton,  Sussex  County,  New  Jersey.  Mr.  Flint 
preached  in  the  Presbyterian  Church  and  "Had  much 
conversation  respecting  the  deplorable  destitution  of 
the  means  of  religious  instruction  in  that  vicinity." 
Minister  and  missionary  were  agreed  that  there  was 
no  part  of  the  country  more  in  need  of  missionaries. 
Bibles,  and  tracts  than  that  between  Newton  and  the 
Wyoming  Country,  and  Newburg  on  the  Hudson  and 
Easton  on  the  Delaware.  But  this  was  only  the  first 
needy  region  that  our  missionary  family  was  to  dis- 
cover. Every  day  of  the  long  journey  west,  brought 
them  new  experiences  of  religious  destitution,  moral 
decay  in  consequence,  of  fields  white  for  the  harvest 
and  no  laborers  in  view.  The  first  missionary  letter"® 
is  full  of  these  trying  experiences,  and  reports  constant 
distributions  of  tracts  and  Bibles,  and  ministries  such 
as  a  Christian  missionary  delighted  to  give  even  to  the 
stranger.  In  this  letter  there  is  a  summary  of  mission- 
ary work  performed  on  the  western  journey: 

Arrived  at  this  place  [Cincinnati]  the  last  of  November, 
through  many  fatigues,  exposures  and  dangers.  .  .  I  have 
not  preached,  as  often  as  I  could  have  wished,  owing  to  the  im- 
possibility of  doing  it,  while  a  passenger  in  a  boat,  as  I  have  been 
the  last  ten  days  of  my  journey.  On  the  Sabbath  I  have  uniform- 
ly collected  the  boat's  crew,  and  had  divine  service ;  and  have  had 

''Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  Cincinnati,  Dec.  5,  1815. 


THE  MISSION  TO  THE  FAR  WEST  57 

the  satisfaction  to  see  them  attentive,  and  the  profanity  diminish- 
ing among  them.  I  have  in  a  great  number  of  instances  addressed 
the  boatmen  -  perhaps  the  most  abandoned  race  of  men  in  any 
country,  that  professes  to  be  Xn.  .  .  Since  I  have  been  here,  I 
have  been  almost  every  day  engaged  in  some  public  religious 
exercise.  I  have  arranged  three,  or  four  missionary  stations  in 
large  villages,  in  this  vicinity,  where  I  hope  to  labor  through  the 
winter. 

Newport,    Kentucky,   and   "White-water,    20   miles 

from  this,"  are  named  as  two  of  his  stations. 

The  story  of  the  journey  westward  must  not  be 

passed  by  without  sharing  the  experience  of  the  family 

as  it  is  told  in  the  Recollections. 

Towards  the  latter  part  of  the  month  [October,  181 5]  we 
began  to  ascend  the  Alleghany  hills.  In  our  slow  mode  of  travel- 
ing we  had  had  them  in  view  several  day^s.  With  their  intermin- 
able blue  outline,  stretching  hill  beyond  hill,  and  interposing  to 
the  imagination  of  such  travelers  as  we  Avere,  a  barrier  to  return 
almost  as  impassable  as  the  grave,  it  may  easily  be  imagined  with 
what  interest  we  contemplated  them.  .  .  Occasional  samples 
of  the  people  and  the  country  bejond  those  hills,  not  at  all  cal- 
culated to  soothe  our  feelings,  or  to  throw  pleasing  associations 
over  our  contemplated  residence  beyond  them,  had  frequently 
met  us.  The  people  on  our  route  constantly  designated  them  by 
the  appellation  of  "back-woodsmen,"  and  we  heard  these  men 
uniformly  calling  their  baggage  "plunder."  The  wolf,  the  bear, 
and  the  bald  eagle,  were  the  most  frequent  emblems  in  the  tavern- 
signs,  near  the  acclivities  of  these  mountains.  The  bald  eagle 
itself  was  soaring  in  the  blue  of  the  atmosphere,  high  above  the 
summits  of  the  first  ridge,  and  its  shrill  and  savage  cries  were 
sufHciently  loud  to  reach  our  ears.^'^ 

There  were  many  "compagnons  de  voyage"  from 
New  England,  "poor,  active,  parsimonious,  inquisi- 
tive" and  like  themselves  more  fully  convinced  of  the 

^^  Flint.     Recollections,  6. 


58  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

superiority  of  their  nativ^e  region  the  farther  they  trav- 
eled away  from  it.  He  says  of  their  experience  before 
they  began  to  descend  the  hills  to  the  west: 

.  .  .  It  will  readily  be  conceived  that  a  family  which  had 
been  reared  in  seclusion,  such  as  ours,  would  be  likely  to  drop 
some  "natural  tears,"  and  to  take  a  long  and  anxious  look  at  the 
land,  which  contained  all  their  ties  and  charities.  We  tried  to 
comfort  each  other,  as  we  steadily  contemplated  the  blue  summits 
that  were  just  before  us,  that  we  had  a  world  in  which  "to  choose 
our  place  of  rest,  and  Providence  our  guide."  But  we  had  al- 
ready wandered  far  enough  from  home,  to  admit  the  full  truth  of 
the  exclamation  of  Attala:  "Happy  they,  who  have  not  seen  the 
smoke  of  the  stranger's  fire."  ^^ 

This  touch  of  homesickness  is  only  the  first  of  very 
many  that  they  are  to  sufifer  in  the  coming  years  of 
their  wanderings.  In  the  first  letter  to  the  Mission- 
ary Society  of  Connecticut,  Mr.  Flint  adds  a  note  to 
the  secretary  saying  that  he  is  so  burdened  with  the 
heavy  traveling  expenses,  and  with  the  religious  con- 
ditions that  he  finds,  that  he  will  not  continue  his 
mission  longer  than  six  months,  and  then  return  with 
his  family  to  his  native  state.  But  we  hear  no  more 
of  this  plan  after  the  first  letter.^" 

They  pressed  on  towards  Pittsburg  on  one  of  the 
great  lines  of  travel,  passing  hundreds  of  w^agons.  Of 
these  wagons  he  says:  "Many  of  them  had  broken 
axles  and  wheels,  and  in  more  than  one  place  it  was 
pointed  out  to  us,  that  teams  had  plunged  down  the 
precipice  and  had  perished."  In  descending  the 
ridges  many  places  were  so  narrow  that  two  carriages 
could  not  pass.     The  rule  in  such  places  was  that  a 

59  Flint.     Recollections,  7. 

^°  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  Cincinnati,  Dec.  5,  1815. 


THE  MISSION  TO  THE  FAR  WEST  59 

hoFH  should  be  blown  or  a  messenger  be  sent  ahead 
to  keep  the  road  clear."" 

The  teamsters  were  an  entirely  new  type  to  this  New 
England  clergyman.  He  says  of  them :  "They  seemed 
to  me  to  be  more  rude,  profane  and  selfish,  than  either 
sailors,  boatmen,  or  hunters,  to  whose  modes  of  living 
theirs  is  the  most  assimilated."  They  were  for  the 
most  part  drunken  and  little  disposed  to  assist  each 
other.  Yet  even  here  there  were  exceptions.  He 
learned  of  a  sort  of  brotherhood  among  them,  sworn 
to  stand  by  each  other  in  the  hour  of  need.  Mr.  Flint 
remarks  that  he  often  dropped  among  these  profane 
wagonmen,  as  if  by  accident,  "that  impressive  tract, 
the  'Swearer's  Prayer'."  Then  he  would  note  the 
effects  as  they  read,  some  assenting  thoughtfully,  oth- 
ers merely  smiling,  and  others  again  growling  approv- 
al very  much  as  Indians  do  at  a  council  when  they 
give  reluctant  assent  to  proposed  terms.^" 

They  met  great  droves  of  cattle  and  swine  being 
driven  from  the  Ohio  country  to  Philadelphia,  and 
these  seemed  rough  and  shaggy  like  wolves.  The 
name  of  the  place  from  which  they  came,  "Mad  Riv- 
er" seemed  to  add  something  to  their  wild  appear- 
ance.^^ 

While  they  were  having  all  the  hardships  of  their 
fellow  travelers,  the  missionary  was  too  much  of  a 
philosopher  not  to  notice  closely  and  to  enjoy  the  hu- 
man nature  about  him.  A  stage  coach  is  broken  down 
and  the  passengers  sit  about  drenched  in  the  rain. 
Their  different  behaviors  are  commented  upon.  A 
German  Lutheran  minister  and  his  family  are  jour- 

^^  Flint.     Recollections,  3.  ^^  —  Idem,  8,  9.  '^^  —  Idem,  9. 


6o  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

neying  in  their  direction.  He  is  going  to  the  "Big 
Miami."  He  had  constantly  in  his  mouth  when 
traveling,  a  pipe, 

In  form  much  like  tiiat  musical  instrument  called  a  serpent,  in 
which  the  smoke  circulated  through  many  circumvolutions,  and 
finally  reached  his  mouth  through  a  silver  mouth-piece.  He  rode 
a  huge  Pennsylvania  horse,  apparently  with  no  consciousness  of 
want  of  feeling  for  his  wife  and  children,  who.  for  the  most  part, 
trudged  along  beside  their  waggon  on  foot. 

The  plain  diet  of  this  family  as  they  sat  at  table 
apart  in  the  inns,  consisting  of  "boiled  potatoes,  sour 
milk,  and  mush,"  excited  the  pity  of  the  Yankee  chil- 
dren, as  their  more  substantial  fare  excited  the  longing 
looks  of  the  young  Germans.*'^ 

The  landscape  in  West  Pennsylvania  reminded 
them  very  much  of  New  England ;  but  not  so  the  "tall, 
hardy,  lank-looking  race  of  men,"  a  mixture  of  Scotch, 
Irish  and  Germans,  who  spoke  a  "singular  and  rather 
ludicrous  dialect."**^ 

Arriving  at  Pittsburg,  the  new  world  is  fully  en- 
tered upon.  Its  vast  number  and  variety  of  river  craft 
is  most  striking  to  the  eastern  eye.  From  this  point 
they  proceeded  by  boat.  They  sold  their  team  and 
wagon  at  a  large  sacrifice  and  found  they  must  pay 
exorbitant  prices  for  everything  they  bought.  They 
were  not  favorably  impressed  in  any  way  with  this 
thriving  and  ambitious  city,  but  they  took  some  com- 
fort on  being  assured  that  there  was  less  of  outbreaking 
evil  than  in  earlier  times. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  follow  the  family  at  length  in 
this  first  stage  of  a  river  journey.  It  is  to  be  often 
repeated  during  the  next  ten  years  and  one  becomes 

***  Flint.     Recollections,  9-11.  *^^  —  Idem,   12. 


THE  MISSION  TO  THE  FAR  WEST  6i 

gradually  familiar  with  it.  It  is  needful  to  remem- 
ber however,  that  the  river  travel,  life,  and  influences 
occupied  a  place  in  the  early  western  civilization  that, 
in  this  day  of  railroads,  can  in  no  adequate  measure  be 
appreciated. 

The  hardships  of  the  entire  journey  from  the  east 
were  great.  Mishaps  and  accidents  were  not  a  few. 
At  Pittsburg,  a  heavy  and  rapidly  driven  coach  had 
collided  with  their  lighter  conveyance  to  the  great 
distress  of  the  latter  but  fortunately  without  much 
harm  to  its  occupants.  The  river  journey  was  the  most 
hazardous.  The  water  was  low  and  they  had  to  wait 
for  a  boat.  The  expense  of  travel  by  steamboats, 
even  if  one  had  been  available  at  this  time  of  the  year, 
was  too  heavy  for  the  slender  missionary  income.  It 
was  only  four  years  after  the  time  when  the  first  steam- 
boat had  been  seen  upon  the  Ohio.  Early  in  Novem- 
ber, they  took  passage  on  a  crazy  Kentucky  flatboat, 
owned  by  a  Yankee  trader,  and  loaded  with  "factory 
cottons  and  cutlery."  It  was  a  perfect  day  when  they 
embarked  at  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  The  Flints 
were  greatly  enjoying  the  beautiful  scenery,  the  novel 
experience  and  the  agreeable  change  in  their  method 
of  travel.  The  Massachusetts  trader  was  indulging 
golden  dreams  when  suddenly  the  flatboat,  instead  of 
floating  gently  along,  as  its  ov^ner  and  passengers  had 
expected,  was  whirled  and  tossed  about  in  a  manner 
altogether  alarming.  The  helpless  craft  was  carried 
swiftly  through  a  chute,  now  it  stuck  on  a  bar,  and  now 
it  was  dashed  upon  the  rocks  of  "Dead  Man's  Riffle" 
and  almost  capsized.  The  children  shrieked,  and  the 
cotton  stufifs  and  hardware  fell  from  the  shelves  and 


62  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

almost  buried  Mrs.  Flint.  The  scared  Yankee  trader 
and  his  reverend  first  mate,  in  their  confusion,  forgot 
to  resort  to  the  oars,  but  tried  to  save  themselves  by 
consulting  the  Navigator,  a  guide  descriptive  of  the 
Ohio  and  Mississippi.*^" 

The  reader  will  not  wonder  that  by  the  time  they 
reached  Beaver,  the  family  forsook  the  risky  flatboat, 
and  bought  a  large  skiff.  But  the  exposure  in  the  open 
boat  resulted  in  the  lung  fever  for  Mr.  Flint  and  sick- 
ness for  the  whole  family.  At  Wheeling  they  were 
forced  to  stop  and  take  lodgings  in  a  house  filled  with 
other  invalid  travelers.  Sick,  neglected,  in  a  strange 
place,  they  helped  one  another  as  well  as  they  could, 
but  were  so  homesick  that  their  eyes  filled  with  tears 
at  the  mere  mention  of  home.  The  people  of  these 
stopping  places  on  the  river  were  so  accustomed  to 
large  numbers  of  sick  and  dying  strangers  among  them 
that  they  had  become  hardened  and  indifferent." 

One  of  the  things  that  Mr.  Flint  noticed  and  felt 
keenly  was  that  the  ministry  in  this  section  had  nothing 
of  the  kindly  hospitality  toward  their  traveling  breth- 
ren, which  made  life  so  agreeable  to  the  ministerial 
traveler  in  New  England.  At  Pittsburg  he  had  been 
introduced  to  a  minister  whose  house  impressed  him 
with  the  wealth  and  opulence  of  the  owner  but  not 
with  his  hospitality.  The  only  entertainment  they 
found  on  this  first  journey  was  at  the  public  places,  at 
high  rates.  In  Pittsburg  they  paid  double  for  accom- 
modations as  compared  with  Boston.^^ 

After  their  recovery  at  Wheeling  they  embarked 
in  a  "keel  boat,"  one  of  the  fastest  and  most  graceful 

*=«  Flint.     Recollections,    19,    20.        ^- —  Idem,    21-26.        ^^  —  Idem,    18. 


THE  MISSION  TO  THE  FAR  WEST  63 

craft  of  the  period.  They  reached  Marietta  in  safety 
after  a  few  days  and,  for  the  first  time  since  leaving 
home,  were  among  friends.  Mr.  Flint  had  letters  to 
General  Putnam  here  and  writes  about  the  pleasure  of 
their  stay  at  this  place. 

You  can  imagine  the  rapidity  of  discourse,  the  attempt  of  two 
or  three  to  narrate  their  adventures  at  the  same  time,  and  the 
many  pleasant  circumstances  attending  the  renewal  of  long  sus- 
pended intercourse  with  congenial  society.®^ 

Near  the  end  of  November,  Flint  purchased  "a 
Kentucky  flat,  of  forty  tons  burthen"  and  descended 
the  river  in  company  with  several  passengers  besides 
his  own  family,  to  Cincinnati.  On  this  last  section 
of  their  journey,  which  occupied  but  a  few  days,  they 
had  their  first  intimate  experience  with  a  Kentuckian. 
He  was  a  fine  healthy-looking  fellow  with  a  young 
wife,  two  or  three  negro  slaves  and  two  children.  He 
was  a  very  profane  man  but  agreed  to  omit  his  usual 
oaths  out  of  respect  for  Mr.  Flint  as  a  minister.  The 
wife  was  hopeful  that  Mr.  Flint  might  cure  him  of 
his  folly  and  make  him  religious  like  "all  his  rela- 
tives." The  Kentuckian  nettled  the  New  England 
children  by  exaggerated  stories  about  Yankees  who 
sold  "pit-coal,  indigo,  and  wooden  nutmegs."  He 
usually  followed  his  anecdotes  by  a  song  with  the 
chorus: 

They  will  put  pine-tops  in  their  whisky. 
And  then  they  call  it  gin.'^" 

Stories  at  the  expense  of  the  Yankees  they  found 
very  common.  Mr.  Flint  thought  that  not  even  the 
poor  Irish  had  so  many  stories  invented  for  them  and 
put  into  their  mouths.     He  takes  these  stories  serious- 

6 '^  Flint.     Recollections,    29,    30.  ''^  —  Idem,    34-36> 


64  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

ly  enough  to  explain  that  the  Yankees  were  often  made 
scape  goats  of,  for  people  who  had  never  been  near 
New  England.  He  thought  also  that  the  superior 
acuteness  of  the  Yankee  had  made  many  a  block-head 
from  other  sections  try  "to  shine  his  hour,  as  a  wise 
man,"  and  assume  "this  terrific  name."^^ 

At  Cincinnati  the  Flints  found  their  cousins.  Heze- 
kiah  Flint  Jr.,  son  of  the  man  who  had  emigrated  with 
the  first  Ohio  company  and  whom  the  eight  year  old 
Timothy  had  followed  with  longing  eyes,  had  moved 
to  Cincinnati  several  years  before  this  time.  This 
cousin  had  been  in  the  west  for  above  twenty-five  years, 
and  his  experience  would  be  invaluable  for  the  intro- 
duction of  the  missionary  family  to  their  new  life  and 
work.  At  Cincinnati  they  settled  for  the  winter,  here 
to  get  their  bearings,  and  to  determine  whether  to  go 
on  in  the  new,  w^ild,  and  strange  w^ay,  or  to  return  to 
the  land  of  their  fathers. 

The  family,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  they  had 
been  raised  in  a  small  New  England  village,  and  were 
quiet  and  shrinking  in  the  presence  of  strangers, 
seemed  to  have  so  adapted  themselves  in  a  short  time 
to  the  western  ways,  that  they  soon  came  to  be  at  home 
in  their  new  world. 


^1  Flint.     Recollections,    32. 


IV.  ITINERATING  IN  THE  OHIO  VALLEY 

The  missionary  family  took  a  house  and  settled  in 
Cincinnati  for  the  winter.  They  found  in  this  new  city, 
but  twenty-five  years  removed  from  the  wilderness, 
many  things  to  surprise  them.  It  had  eight  or  nine 
thousand  people,  Mr.  Flint  said, 

.  .  .  Handsome  streets,  a  number  of  churches,  one  a  very 
large  one,  a  very  spacious  building  for  a  Lancastrian  school,  and 
other  public  buildings,  and  two  commodious  market-houses.  On 
the  opposite  shore  rose  a  considerable  village ;  an  arsenal  of  brick, 
some  handsome  mansions,  and  one  or  two  countrj'^-seats,  that  rose 
still  further  in  the  distance.  The  buildings  on  each  side  were 
placed  in  positions,  that  displayed  them  to  the  best  possible  advan- 
tage, on  gentle  slopes  rising  gradually  from  the  shores  of  the  river. 

Mr.  Flint  contrasts  the  free  and  rapid  growth  of  this 
city  with  that  of  St.  Petersburg  which  was  reared  by 
"a  great  and  intelligent  despot"  who  said,  ''  'let  there 
be  a  city'  and  a  city  arose  upon  a  Golgotha,  upon  piles 
of  human  bones  and  skulls  that  gave  consistency  to  a 
morass."  He  is  too  true  an  American  not  to  be  proud 
of  this  difference  and  he  is  prophet  enough  to  see  that 
at  no  distant  day  the  banks  of  the  Ohio  will  become  a 
continuous  village,  and  this  section  in  a  single  century 
become  almost  as  populous  as  Europe.  He  was  im- 
pressed with  the  abundance  of  vegetables,  meats, 
game,  and  fish,  and  indeed,  all  the  market  supplies  of 
an  eastern  city.  He  found  provisions  cheaper  here, 
but  the  total  expense  of  maintaining  a  family  was  much 


66  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

larger  than  in  Massachusetts.  He  asserts  a  few  years 
later,  concerning  the  seven  hundred  thousand  people 
of  Ohio,  that  there  are  not  the  same  number  of  people 
anywhere  else  on  the  globe  so  well  clothed  and  fed  as 
are  they/' 

He  found  in  this  city  much  sufifering  among  the 
strangers  and  emigrants.  He  says:  "It  seemed  to 
have  been  their  impression,  that  if  once  they  could 
arrive  at  the  land  of  milk  and  honey,  supplies  would 
come  of  course."  Many  suffered  and  died  and  were 
buried  by  charit}\  He  gives  an  incident  of  a  family 
from  Maine.  The  family  was  large  and  crowded 
into  one  room.     Flint  continues: 

The  husband  and  father  was  dying  and  expired  while  I  was 
there.  The  wife  was  sick  in  the  same  bed,  and  either  from  terror 
or  exhaustion,  uttered  not  a  word  during  the  whole  scene.  Three 
children  were  sick  of  fevers.  If  you  add  that  they  were  in  the 
house  of  a  poor  man  and  had  spent  their  last  dollar,  you  can  fill 
out  the  picture  of  their  misery. 

Mr.  Flint  thought  that  the  government  ought  to  do 
something  to  regulate  the  stream  of  migration  and 
that  there  ought  to  be  more  help  from  voluntary  socie- 
ties and  from  churches -the  Methodists  being  the  only 
body  that  cared  for  their  people  in  such  circum- 
stances, and  they  did  it  with  commendable  zeal  and 
liberality.''^ 

The  missionary  was  pleased  to  discover  that  the 
moral  conditions  of  society  at  Cincinnati,  considering 
its  age  and  the  materials  of  which  it  had  been  made, 
was  "astonishingly  regular  and  correct."  There  were 
many  societies  for  diffusion  of  religious  knowledge, 
instruction,  and  charity.     The  ladies  had  formed  a 

^2  Flint.     Recollections,    38-40.  ""  —  Idem,   41, 


ITINERATING  IN  THE  OHIO  VALLEY  67 

bible  and  charitable  society.  The  members  were 
highly  respectable  and  their  work  showed  genuine 
benevolence/* 

He  found  the  people  of  the  city  showing  a  laudable 
desire  to  belong  to  some  religious  society.  At  the 
time  of  his  arrival  the  Methodists  appeared  to  be  in 
the  lead.  They  were  strongly  marked  with  the  pecul- 
iarities of  their  sect.  They  had  a  number  of  lay 
preachers,  some  of  them  among  the  wealthiest  people 
of  the  town.  These  preachers  were  the  leaders  of  par- 
tisans and  sects  with  unhappy  results.  They  had  more 
esprit  du  corps  than  other  sects  and  were  disposed 
to  use  it  in  aid  of  political  and  other  projects  marked 
out  in  conclave  by  their  leaders.'" 

Mr.  Flint  attended  a  meeting  of  Presbytery  which 
was  called  for  the  settlement  of  disputes.'^     He  says: 

The  ministers  took  the  attitude,  and  made  the  long  speeches 
of  lawj'ers.  .  .  Thej'  availed  themselves  of  the  same  vehement 
action,  and  pouring  out  a  great  deal  of  rather  vapid  declamation, 
proceeded  to  settle  points,  that  seemed  to  me  of  very  little  import- 
ance. The  whole  scene  presented,  it  may  be,  a  sufficient  modicum 
of  talent  for  the  bar,  but  manifested  much  want  of  the  appro- 
priate temper. 

The  press  began  at  this  time  to  teem  with  polemical 
religious  pamphlets.  He  remembered  the  first  phrase 
of  one  of  them  was,  "It  beats  the  devil."  But  he 
thought  the  religious  disputes  of  all  ages  were  like 
these  of  the  western  city,  though  possibly  not  quite  so 
coarsely  expressed." 

'■*  Flint.     Recollections,   47. 
"^  —  Idem,  45,  46. 

"'^  It  is  to  be  remembered  that  the  New  England  clergymen  count  them- 
selves Presbyterians  v.hen  in  the  west  at  this  period. 
'^^  Flint.     Recollections,  46.     See  also  69. 


68  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

One  of  the  reasons,  that  made  Ohio  seem  not  inap- 
propriately called  the  "Yankee  state"  Mr.  Flint  says, 
was  that  it  had  not  only  the  same  desire  for  schools, 
psalmody,  settling  ministers,  and  religious  worship, 
but,  "the  same  disposition  to  dogmatize,  to  settle,  not 
only  their  own  faith,  but  that  of  their  neighbor,  and 
to  stand  resolutely,  and  dispute  fiercely,  for  the  slight- 
est shade  of  difference  of  religious  opinions."'^ 

It  was  during  this  winter  that  Mr.  Flint  made  his 
first  acquaintance  with  a  new  sect,  called  the  "Cum- 
berland Presbyterians."  He  could  not  give  accurately 
the  shades  of  difference  which  distinguished  them 
from  the  older  body  of  Presbyterians.  "They  describe 
themselves,"  he  says,  "in  point  of  speculation,  to  agree 
with  the  Arminians."  In  the  manner  of  their  preach- 
ing, and  especially  as  to  vociferousness  they  copied  the 
Methodists  but  outdid  their  model.  In  culture  they 
were  inferior  to  the  Methodists,  so  far  as  he  had  heard 
them.  In  common  with  new  sects  they  seemed  to  have 
the  juvenile  ardor  and  desire  to  make  proselytes.  He 
was  interested  in  their  movement  to  build  a  school 
where  "the  rough  timber,  which  they  work  into  the 
sanctuary,  may  be  hewed  with  the  'axe  of  the  proph- 
ets'."" 

He  found  the  ministers  of  the  region,  men  of  con- 
siderable talent  and  readiness,  the  latter  quality  being 
promoted  by  the  invariable  habit  of  extemporaneous 
speaking.  They  were  also,  usually  men  of  enlight- 
ened zeal  and  entire  sanctity  of  general  character.  He 
noted  some  peculiarities  in  the  style  of  preaching  in 
this  region,  which  had  been  influenced  by  the  pre- 

"s  Flint.     Recollections,  44,  45.  "9  —  Idem,  75. 


m 


ITINERATING  IN  THE  OHIO  VALLEY  69 

ponderance  of  Methodists  and  the  more  sensitive  char- 
acter of  the  south.     He  says: 

They  did  not  much  affect  discussion,  but  ran  at  once  into  the 
declamatory.  Sometimes  these  flights  were  elevated,  but  much 
oftener  not  well  sustained.  For  the  speaking,  the  whole  was,  for 
the  most  part,  moulded  in  one  form.  They  commenced  the  para- 
graph in  a  moderate  tone,  gradually  elevating  the  voice  with  each 
period,  and  closing  it  with  the  greatest  exertion,  and  the  highest 
pitch  of  the  voice.  They  then  affected,  or  it  seemed  like  affecta- 
tion, to  let  the  voice  down  to  the  original  modulation,  in  order 
to  run  it  up  to  the  same  pitch  again. *^ 

Mr.  Flint  was  pleased  to  think  there  was  a  growing 
change  of  taste,  especially  in  the  cities,  in  the  matter 
of  pulpit  oratory.  Two  or  three  well  trained  and 
eloquent  young  clergymen  from  the  north,  had  passed 
through  Ohio  and  Kentucky,  had  preached  frequent- 
ly, and  had  been  highly  popular.  These  men,  and 
the  finer  culture  that  was  rapidly  spreading  from  the 
schools,  was  working  a  radical  change.  Mr.  Flint 
wTote*^^  to  the  Missionary  Society  of  Connecticut  that 
the  character  and  reputation  of  an  eastern  missionary, 
even  though  he  was  under  some  suspicion  as  to  his 
theological  soundness,  was  almost  too  high  for  the 
advantage  of  the  missionary  when  he  came  to  preach 
before  the  expectant  people. 

This  popularity  of  the  New  England  preacher 
would  seem  to  be  illustrated  in  Mr.  Flint's  first  win- 
ter's work,  and  during  other  periods  also.  In  Ken- 
tucky he  often  had  large  and  enthusiastic  audiences 
and  was  several  times  pressed  to  remain  for  a  second 
night  or  until  a  Sunday  when  more  people  might  hear 

*^  Flint.     Recollections,  47. 

^'  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  Cincinnati,  March  20,  i8r6. 


70  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

him.*"  He  was  however,  often  conscious  of  the  strong 
prejudice  that  had  been  much  increased  in  this  section 
by  the  attitude  of  New  England  during  the  war  of 
1 8 1 2,  but  everywhere  he  found  that  a  man  of  reputable 
appearance  was  treated  with  courtesy,  and  the  "Yan- 
kee" was  no  exception." 

Among  the  several  professions  that  Mr.  Flint  char- 
acterizes is  that  of  the  law.  In  Ohio  the  lawyer  was 
generally  democratic,  while  in  the  opposite  state  he 
was  a  dandy.  "The  language  of  the  bar  was  in  many 
instances  an  amusing  compound  of  Yankee  dialect, 
southern  peculiarity,  and  Irish  blarney."  "Him" 
and  "me"  said  this  or  that,  "I  done  it"  and  similar 
phrases  were  common,  while  the  figures  of  speech 
were  taken  from  the  measuring  and  location  of  land 
purchases,  the  navigation  of  the  rivers,  and  other  local 
interests.^* 

Whatever  lack  of  taste  and  culture  Mr.  Flint  found 
in  the  western  world,  at  the  bar,  in  the  pulpit  and  in 
the  press,  it  was  not,  he  thought,  from  a  lack  of  tal- 
ent. He  found  that  here  were  the  most  ardent  and 
powerful  minds,  allured  by  speculation  and  adventure. 
The  lack  of  taste  so  much  displayed  in  public,  came 
rather  from  the  always  common  disposition  of  the  in- 
competent to  make  themselves  prominent  and  vis- 
ible.«^ 

We  have  much  in  the  Recollections  about  the  nat- 
ural scenery  of  the  region  through  which  Mr.  Flint 
traveled.  Added  to  his  love  of  nature,  and  the  keen 
interest  excited  by  novelty,  there  seems  to  have  been 

82  Letter,  op.  cit.  «* —  Idem,  51. 

83  Flint.     Recollections,   69,   70.  ^•"'  —  Idem,  49. 


ITINERATING  IN  THE  OHIO  VALLEY  71 

a  purpose  to  learn  and  remember  all  that  he  could  in 
order  to  use  it  for  the  printed  page.  There  is  much 
said  about  the  state  of  society  and  there  are  many  in- 
teresting comparisons  made.  He  did  not  think  the 
people  of  Ohio  were  mostly  from  New  England  but 
he  thought  the  institutions  of  that  section  were  very 
much  in  the  ascendency,  and  also  that  Ohio  was  the 
last  state  toward  the  west  where  that  would  be  true. 
He  says:  "The  prevalent  modes  of  living,  of  society, 
of  instruction,  of  association  for  any  public  object,  of 
thinking,  and  enjoying,  among  the  middle  classes, 
struck  me,  generally,  to  be  copies  of  the  New  England 
pattern."  Mr.  Flint  had  not  visited  "New  Connecti- 
cut" at  this  time  and  is  speaking  of  the  Ohio  River 
region  of  the  state.  The  more  dense  population,  the 
small  farms,  the  villages,  and  even  the  face  of  the 
country,  in  some  ways,  reminded  the  New  Englander 
of  his  own  country.^* 

One  of  the  most  interesting  men  that  Mr.  Flint  met 
in  these  first  months  was  General  Harrison.  He 
records  in  both  the  Recollections  and  the  missionary 
letters,  his  impressions  of  and  the  benefactions  re- 
ceived from  this  man  who  was  then  well  known  as  the 
hero  of  an  Indian  war.  He  lived  at  North  Bend, 
Ohio,  seventeen  miles  below  Cincinnati  on  the  Ohio 
River.  "On  a  fine  farm,"  says  Flint  "in  the  midst  of 
the  woods,  his  house  was  open  to  all  the  neighbors, 
who  entered  without  ceremony,  and  were  admitted  to 
assume  a  footing  of  entire  equality."  His  table  was 
"loaded  with  abundance  and  with  substantial  good 
cheer,  especially  with  the  dififerent  kinds  of  game." 

8^  Flint.     Recollectio7is,  44,  45. 


72  TIMOTHY  FLINT 

It  was  like  old  English  hospitality.  The  general's 
personal  appearance  was  not  at  first  preposessing. 
Mr.  Flint  describes  him  as: 

A  small,  and  rathfr  sallow  looking;  man.  .  .  But  he  grows 
upon  the  eye  and  upon  more  intimate  acquaintance.  There  is 
something  imposing  in  the  dignified  simplicity  of  his  manners. 
In  the  utter  want  of  all  show,  and  insignia,  and  trappings,  there 
is  something,  w^hich  finely  comports  WMth  the  severe  plainness  of 
republicanism.  .  .  There  is  a  great  deal  of  ardor  and  vivacity 
in  his  manner.  He  h.is  a  copious  fund  of  that  eloquence  which 
is  fitted  for  the  camp  and  for  gaining  partisans.*'^ 

Mr.  Flint  thought  that  he  had  generally  been 
underrated  as  a  commander.  It  is  interesting  to  note 
that  among  the  amounts  collected  by  Mr.  Flint  on  his 
field,  and  reported  to  the  Missionary  Society,  is  five 
dollars  from  General  Harrison,  presented  to  Mrs. 
Flint,  December  17,  1815.^^  But  the  general  ren- 
dered his  cause  much  more  substantial  aid  than  this 
by  the  opening  of  his  house  for  public  worship,  by 
hospitality  to  the  missionary  when  on  his  tours,  and  by 
hospitality  to  his  family  party  when  they  were  jour- 
neying to  St.  Louis.  Here  also  Mr.  Flint  organized 
one  of  the  two  churches  which  were  the  fruit  of  his 
first  winter's  work,  the  other  being  at  Newport,  Ken- 
tucky. During  this  winter  General  Harrison  urged 
Mr.  Flint  to  settle  in  his  community  as  the  minister.*^ 
He  had  similar  invitations  from  Dayton,  Ohio,  and 
Lexington,  Kentucky. 

In  March,  after  a  very  severe  winter,  which  the 
westerners  said  had  been  caused  by  the  unusually 
large  number  of  Yankees  who  had  arrived  the  pre- 

*^  Flint.     RecoUeciions,  50. 

88  Item  reported  in  the  letter  of  July  2,  1816,  written  from  St.  Louis, 

89—  Idem. 


ITINERATING  IN  THE  OHIO  VALLEY  75 

ceding  months,  Mr.  Flint  took  a  three  hundred  mile 
circuit  through  Indiana  and  Kentucky,  being  gone 
twenty-two  days  and  preaching  seventeen  times,  as  he 
reports  to  his  Society.""  In  Indiana  he  was  contin- 
ually coming  upon  new^  cabins  in  the  forests  along  the 
Ohio  River.  He  draws  an  interesting  picture  of  the 
evolution  of  the  cabin  into  the  frame  house,  and  the 
brick  mansion;  the  family  meanwhile  aspiring  to  rise 
in  the  financial,  social,  and  cultural  world. "^  There 
were  many  settlers  from  New  England,  the  question 
of  forming  a  state  government  was  warm,  and  the 
slavery  issue  was  being  keenly  agitated.  There  was 
fear  expressed  by  the  southern  element  that  it  might 
be  a  Yankee  state  like  Ohio.^" 

Vincennes,  then  the  principal  place  in  the  state,  was 
visited  by  the  missionary,  and  also  Vevay.  In  the 
latter  place  he  was  interested  in  the  colony  of  Swiss 
and  their  attempt  to  plant  great  vineyards  in  the  for- 
ests. He  admired  the  colonists  very  much  and  com- 
ments on  their  intermarriage  with  the  Kentuckians. 
He  crossed  into  Kentucky  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  of 
that  name,  in  company  with  an  educated  young  Ger- 
man as  his  traveling  companion.  This  German  was 
able  to  see  the  advantages  and  disadvantages  of  the 
new  country,  and  especially  the  opportunities  it  of- 
fered for  the  poor  of  his  own  country.^" 

In  Kentucky  he  found  the  people  living  easily  and 
in  plenty.  The  young  natives  seemed  to  him  the 
largest  people  he  had  ever  seen.     The  villages  were 

^•'Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  Cincinnati,  March  20,  1816. 
^^  Flint.     Recollect'to7ts,  53. 
^-  —  Idem,  56,  57. 
93  —  Idem,  58,  60. 


76  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

full  of  people  who  had  nothing  to  do.  Everywhere 
there  were  striking  marks  of  rustic  opulence.  The 
public  houses  were  full  of  well  dressed  boarders, 
travelers  and  strangers.  The  meals  were  served  up 
with  much  display,  and  the  lady  hostess  was  conducted 
by  some  dandy  to  her  chair  at  the  head  of  the  table, 
which  was  regarded  as  a  post  of  honor,  and  which  she 
filled  with  suitable  dignity. 

I  felt  grieved  to  see  so  many  fine  young  men  exempted  from 
labor,  having  no  liberal  studies  and  pursuits  to  fill  up  their  time, 
and  falling  almost,  of  course,  into  the  prevailing  vices  of  the 
West  -  gambling  and  intemperance.  .  .  The  parents  lament- 
ed the  fact,  and  the  children  were  ready  more  frankly  to  confess 
the  charge,  than  to  reform.^* 

Mr.  Flint  found  the  people  of  Kentucky  more  en- 
thusiastic and  national  than  any  other  western  people 
and  looking  with  disdain  upon  the  people  of  the 
younger  states.  He  tells  an  anecdote,  said  to  be 
familiar  to  every  westerner,  about  a  Methodist 
preacher  from  Kentucky  preaching  in  a  neighboring 
state.  He  was  trying  to  describe  heaven.  Failing  in 
adjectives  and  similies  he  said:  "In  short,  my  breth- 
ren to  say  all  in  one  word,  Heaven  is  a  Kentuck  of  a 
place."  ^= 

In  consequence  of  this  feeling  and  of  the  age  and 
wealth  of  Kentucky,  Mr.  Flint  found  that  in  all  the 
neighboring  states  the  Kentuckians  claimed  and  often 
received  a  preeminence  in  official  and  social  circles, 
which  gave  them  a  marked  influence  upon  the  entire 
western  world.  He  cautioned  the  thoughtful  people 
of  the  state  against  the  common  and  acknowledged 
evils  that  he  had  pointed  out  to  them  as  being  danger- 
s'* Flint.    Recollections,  62.  ^5 —  Idem,  63,  64. 


ITINERATING  IN  THE  OHIO  VALLEY  77 

ous  not  only  to  themselves  and  their  descendants,  but 
to  wide  regions,  soon  to  be  great  and  influential  states. 
He  concludes: 

Upon  none  of  the  western  states  is  the  obligation  to  labor  for 

the  disciplining,  purifying,  and,  if  I  may  so  say,  of  redeeming  the 

young,  so  solemnly  imposed,  as  upon  this.^" 

Mr.  Clay  had  just  returned  from  Ghent,  where  he 
had  been  a  member  of  the  Peace  Commission,  when 
our  missionary  visited  Lexington.  Out  of  consider- 
ation for  the  statesman's  fatigue  from  receiving  a  large 
number  of  callers  after  his  return,  he  did  not  join  the 
procession  but  remarks  approvingly  of  Mr.  Clay  as  a 
statesman  and  a  man  of  true  culture  though  he  may 
not  have  had  the  usual  advantages  in  that  direction. 
He  regrets  that  so  man}'^  young  men  pride  themselves 
on  their  not  having  a  classical  education  and  imagin- 
ing that  they  are  following  the  great  statesman's  ex- 
ample. "For  the  one  prize  so  obtained,  there  would 
be  a  thousand  blanks."'''' 

"Lexington  is  a  singularly  neat  and  pleasant  town," 
he  thinks.  Not  so  large  or  flourishing  as  Cincinnati, 
but  justly  claiming  to  be  the  "Athens  of  the  West," 
while  its  larger  rival  can  only  be  the  Corinth.  Mr. 
Flint  pays  high  compliment  to  the  Transylvania  Uni- 
versity at  Lexington,  and  to  its  head,  Doctor  Blythe 
who,  he  regrets,  is  bitterly  opposed  by  the  conservative 
religionists.  The  signs  of  general  culture  which  he 
found  in  the  homes  were  largely  traceable,  he  thought, 
to  this  and  similar  institutions.""* 

In  his  missionary  work  during  the  four  months  of 
his  residence  in  Cincinnati  Mr.  Flint  followed  the 
plan  of  "that  sagacious  society,  the  Methodists."     He 

»8  Flint.     Recollections,  72.  ^'' —  Icfrm,  77.  ^^  —  IJern,  67,  68. 


78  TlAlOriiV    FLINT 

arranged  a  circuit  at  several  points  resulting,  as  before 
indicated,  in  two  permanent  churches.  He  was  ap- 
palled by  the  paganism  and  ignorance  that  he  found 
in  the  new  and  remote  regions  and  in  the  river  settle- 
ments, the  better  classes  of  settlers  being  more  on  the 
upper  waters  of  the  lateral  streams/'" 

He  organized  several  "societies  for  the  suppression 
of  intemperance  and  Sabbath  breaking,  the  crying  sins 
of  the  country."  He  found  twenty-three  families 
within  three  miles  of  General  Harrison's  place  with- 
out a  complete  copy  of  the  Bible,  and  his  supply  was 
speedily  exhausted.  The  people  had  very  little  read- 
ing matter  and  had  poor  reading  habits  compared 
with  New  England  people.  His  tracts  were  de- 
voured eagerly.  He  had  almost  given  ofifense  in  dol- 
ing out  the  few  he  had  for  distribution.  These,  he 
thought,  were  the  most  effective  tools  the  missionary 
could  use.  He  says  he  found  "the  taste,  the  singing 
and  the  selections  that  prevailed  here,  to  the  last  de- 
gree bad."  He  had  prepared  a  collection  of  "slow, 
sweet,  and  solemn  music"  selected  from  European 
books  and  changed  into  the  patent  note  form.  He 
was  fearful  that  the  expense  of  printing,  which  was 
high  there,  would  prevent  his  publishing  the  selec- 
tions which  he  thought  would  do  something  to  add  to 
the  attractions  and  solemnity  of  psalmody,  in  that 
section."^ 

The  question  of  support  was  a  most  difficult  and 
trying  one  to  Mr.  Flint.  His  salary  from  the  Mis- 
sionary Society  of  Connecticut  was  twenty-five  dollars 
per  month,  with  no  allowance  for  expenses  and  with 

"^Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  Cincinnati,  Jan.   i8,   i8i6. 
1""  Letter  of  Feb.  12,  1816. 


ITINERATING  IN  THE  OHIO  VALLEY  79 


all  receipts  from  the  field  deducted  from  this  meager 
amount.     In  January  of  1816,  he  wrote  to  the  secre- 
tary that  his  salary  very  little  more  than  covered  half 
of  his  living  expenses  and  asked  that  he  might  have 
his  collections  in  addition  to  his  salary  from  the  so- 
ciety.    This  was  apparently  granted  to  him  after- 
wards and  was  a  favor  shown  to  few  others  at  that  time. 
Mr.  Flint  found  that  expenses  were  very  high  in  many 
ways  and  that  he  had  little  gain  from  the  hospitality 
of  the  people  among  whom  he  preached  such  as  an 
unmarried  man  would  have  had.     He  was  soon  plan- 
ning to  settle  in  a  large  center  where  he  might  get  a 
more  adequate  support  from  church  and  school  work. 
He  found  that  the  people  in  the  country  places  had  no 
thought  of  any  obligation  to  support  the  gospel.     He 
could  not  urge  the  matter  without  injury  to  his  work. 
He  was  at  times  so  much  straitened  that  he  decided 
to  give  up  his  mission  and  go  into  some  work  where 
he  could  support  his  family'"'     He  received  during 
his  three  weeks  tour  in  Kentucky,  fifty-one  dollars  and 
fifty  cents  in  unsolicited  gifts.     For  the  four  months 
in  the  Ohio  Valley  he  reported  sixty-six  dollars  and 
twenty-five  cents  received  "'  from  the  field  and  in  addi- 
tion to  his  salary.     In  the  later  letters  written  this  first 
winter,  the  burden  had  lifted  a  little  and  he  apolo- 
gized to  the  secretary  of  the  society  for  the  anxiety  he 
had  shown  earlier."^ 

1"!  Letter  of  Jan.  18,  i8i6. 

^"2  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Louis,  July  2,  1816.  Flint  had  instruc- 
tions to  limit  his  letters  to  one  sheet.  In  many  cases  he  found  that  difficult 
and  sometimes  cross  lines  his  letters.  In  this  letter  he  adds  an  e  itra  sheet  and 
gives  a  financial  report  of  his  work  up  to  this  date.  It  is  one  of  the  two  or 
three  most  important  missionary  letters. 

i<>3  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  Cincinnati,  March  20,  1816. 


8o  riMOTH^     FJ.INT 

But  a  feeling  that  there  was  a  still  greater  need  of 
his  work  on  the  Mississippi  where  there  was  no  organ- 
ized mission  work,  the  hope  of  establishing  himself  in 
a  central  place  like  St.  Louis,  and  a  letter  from  Mr. 
Stephen  Hempstead  •■  of  the  latter  place,  decided  him 
to  go  on  to  this  region.  Accordingly  he  asked  for  a 
transfer  of  his  commission  to  "the  Illinois  territory 
and  the  course  of  the  Mississippi."  There  he  hoped 
to  be  ''the  founder  of  the  first  branch  of  the  Pres. 
church  in  St.  Louis  and  the  Miss.  Territory."  This 
decision  was  reached  and  arrangements  made  to  go 
before  he  knew  that  the  society  had  sent  another  man 
to  that  region  -  the  Reverend  Salmon  Giddings.  Mr. 
Flint  thought,  however,  there  would  be  room  for  both 
of  tJiem!  He  had  been  invited  to  settle  both  at  Ver- 
sailles and  Frankfort  but  had  declined,  in  part  because 
there  was  an  academy  connected  with  a  pastoral 
charge  of  more  than  one  church,  and  he  did  not  feel 
physically  able  for  the  undertakings."*  One  might 
be  led  to  suspect  that  Mr.  Flint  was  beginning  to  be 
infected  with  the  same  migratory  spirit  which  he 
charges  upon  the  Kentuckians,  when  he  says  of  them : 

*  Mr.  Flint  had  written  to  Stephen  Henapstead  on  Dec.  29,  1815,  as 
follows:  "Seeing  in  Messrs.  Mills  and  Smith's  Journal,  of  their  missionary 
tour  into  your  country,  your  name  given  as  a  fit  character,  to  whom  to  send 
bibles  for  distribution,  I  have  inferred  from  that  circumstance,  that  you 
were  interested  in  the  concerns  of  religion  in  general. 

"I  am  a  missionary'  from  the  Presbyterian  church  of  Connecticut,  sent  to 
labor  where  there  appears  the  best  prospect  of  doing  good.  I  am  at  present 
laboring  in  this  vicinitj',  but  have  had  thought  of  visiting  St.  Louis  in  the 
spring."  He  inquires  also  about  the  prospects  for  missionary  work,  the 
attitude  of  the  people  and  the  heakhfulness  of  the  climate.  See  Letter  in 
collection  of  Missouri  Historical  Society.  Copy  in  Harvard  University 
Library. 

1"*  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  Cincinnati,  March  2c,   iSi'i. 


ITINERATING  IN  THE  OHIO  VALLEY  8i 


"Though  they  have  good  houses  they  might  almost  as 
well,  like  the  Tartars,  dwell  in  tents."  He  wanted  to 
see  what  was  in  the  west.  Living  was  cheaper !  Op- 
portunities greater!  The  rainbow  descended  on  the 
Mississippi! 


V.    THE  JOURNEY  DOWN  THE  MISSISSIP- 
PI AND  SOJOURN  IN  ST.  LOUIS 

For  the  journey  down  the  Ohio  and  up  the  Missis- 
sippi, Mr.  Flint  purchased  a  keelboat  about  ninety 
feet  in  length  and  of  seventeen  tons  burden.  At  that 
time  there  was  but  one  steamboat  which  went  up  the 
Mississippi  above  the  Ohio  and  it  was  unsafe.  Their 
boat  was  heavily  loaded,  having  at  first  several  pas- 
sengers besides  Mr.  Flint's  family,  and  a  considerable 
stock  of  merchandise,  about  seven  thousand  dollars 
worth,  which  belonged  principally  to  a  brother  of 
Mr.  Flint.  This  merchandise  was  intended  for  the 
establishment  in  the  new  country,  of  a  business  for  this 
brother  and  Micah  P.,  the  oldest  son  of  the  mission- 
ary.^""* 

Many  friends  had  been  gained  in  Cincinnati. 
Shortly  before  his  departure,  the  Female  Charitable 
Association  had  invited  him  to  preach  a  sermon  for 
them  and  had  given  him  twenty  dollars  for  his  mis- 
sion.^°*^  These  and  other  friends  accompanied  the 
family  to  their  boat  to  see  them  off,  after  having  made 
many  kind  provisions  for  their  comfort  upon  the  long 
journey.  The  breaking  of  ties  here  was  a  foretaste  of 
similar  experiences  that  came  to  them  many  times  in 

10=  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  June  4,  1818.     See  also  letter  of 
Giddings,  St.  Louis,  March  2,  1818. 
ioG_  Idem,  St.  Louis,  July  2,  1816. 


84  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

the  succeeding  years  and  led  Mr.  Flint  to  say  that  he 
found  gloomy  thoughts  connected  with  every  effort  to 
form  new  acquaintances,  which  however  pleasant,  are 
so  transient  and  frail.'" 

The  date  given  in  the  Recollections  for  the  depar- 
ture from  Cincinnati  is  April  twelfth,  and  for  the 
arrival  at  St.  Louis,  May  twenty-fourth,  while  the  let- 
ter written  to  the  Connecticut  Society,  July  second, 
from  St.  Louis  gives  the  dates  as  April  fifteenth  and 
May  thirteenth.  In  view  of  the  time  that  had  elapsed 
before  Mr.  Flint  wrote  the  Recollections,  some  ten 
years,  and  then  far  from  his  books  and  papers  while 
on  a  visit  in  Massachusetts,  and  also  in  view  of  the  fact 
that  most  of  his  journals  and  papers  had  been  de- 
stroyed by  a  cyclone  in  Arkansas,^"*  there  need  be  no 
hesitation  in  accepting  the  dates  in  the  letters  in  pref- 
erence to  those  in  the  printed  pages  of  his  book,  re- 
gretting only  that  the  revised  copy  of  this  book  is  lost. 

The  first  two  hours  of  the  journey  down  the  river 
were  most  delightful,  but  for  the  threatening  thunder 
clouds  gathering  in  the  west.  The  storm  broke  upon 
them  so  severely  and  suddenly  that  they  could  not 
make  the  shore  and  they  were  compelled  to  weather  it 
in  the  open  river,  their  heavily  laden  boat  taking  in 
considerable  water,  and  all  on  board  being  thor- 
oughly frightened.  Even  the  grim  ^'patron"  of  the  boat 
looked  serious  though  he  had  been  many  years  on  the 
river  and  many  times  wrecked.  Because  of  the 
storm  they  landed  at  General  Harrison's  place  the 
first  evening  and  continued  there  a  couple  of  days, 
being  most  hospitably  entertained  by  him  and  enjoy- 

10' Flint    Recollections,  io.  ^^^  —  Idem,^. 


SOJOURN  IN  ST.  LOUIS  85 

ing  the  thorough  work  that  a  skilled  tutor  was  doing 
with  his  children.'"* 

Mr.  Flint  thinks  they  would  have  turned  back  after 
this  inauspicious  beginning  of  their  voyage  if  they 
had  been  in  the  least  superstitious  or  if  they  could  at 
all  have  foreseen  even  a  part  of  what  was  to  befall 
them.  It  was  on  the  second  day  of  the  trip  down  the 
river  and  at  Lawrenceburg,  that  the  eleven  year  old 
daughter  Emeline,  playing  about  the  boat  with  some 
child  of  the  village,  fell  into  the  river  and  would 
have  been  drowned  but  for  the  help  of  a  stranger.''" 

They  reached  the  Mississippi  in  ten  days'  time,  hav- 
ing picked  up  a  boat's  crew  of  ten  or  a  dozen  men  at 
"Shawnoe-town."  This  place  is  described  as  "an  un- 
pleasant looking  village,  that  had  but  just  emerged 
from  an  inundation,  before  our  arriving  there.'"" 
The  boat's  crew  had  agreed  that  they  would  neither 
swear  nor  become  intoxicated  while  they  were  in  the 
service  of  the  minister.  This  agreement  was  so  well 
kept,  that  they  earned  the  title  of  "the  civil  boat's 
crew"  from  people  on  the  shores  and  from  other  boat- 
men, who  were  surprised  by  not  receiving  from  them 
the  customary  abuse  and  profanity."'  This  agree- 
ment could  not,  however,  relieve  the  owner  of  the  boat 
from  the  necessity  of  providing  the  crew  with  the 
customary  "refreshments,"  or,  as  Flint  says,  "the  us- 
ual compliment." 

On  the  twenty-fifth  of  April"'  their  boat  drifted 

109  Flint.     Recollections,  83. 

ii»—  Idem,  83. 

iix  —  ldem. 

112  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Louis,  July  2,  1816. 

11;:  _  Uem. 


86  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

into  the  turbid,  chalk-like  waters  of  the  Mississippi 
and  was  made  last  to  the  young  willows  on  the  shore 
while  the  crew  prepared  for  the  toilsome  and  perilous 
ascent  of  the  river.  The  family  was  distressed  by 
what  they  saw  of  an  attempt  to  build  a  city  at  the 
junction  of  the  two  great  rivers.  All  they  found  of 
the  ambitious  city  of  Cairo  was  floating  on  a  great  flat 
boat  "a  hundred  feet  in  length,  in  which  were  fam- 
ilies, liquor-shops,  drunken  men  and  women,  and  all 
the  miserable  appendages  of  such  a  place."  '"* 

The  Mississippi  opened  to  them  a  new  world.  It 
was  to  them  as  to  most  of  the  American  people  of  that 
time,  the  "ultima  Thule-a  limit  almost  to  the  range 
of  thought."  The  forests  had  seldom  resounded,  ex- 
cept with  the  cry  of  wild  beasts,  the  echo  of  thunder, 
or  the  crash  of  undermined  trees,  falling  into  the 
flood.  The  sense  of  newness,  combined  with  the 
sense  of  novelty.  They  "beheld  everything  as  though 
the  water,  the  plants,  the  trees  of  the  Mississippi, 
would  be  different  from  the  same  things  elsewhere." 
This  led  Mr.  Flint  to  say  when  writing  ten  years  later, 

Perhaps  the  first  half  day  that  we  passed  in  ascending  the  river 
under  every  favorable  omen,  was  the  happiest  period  that  we  ever 
experienced,  as  it  respects  mere  physical  enjoj-ment. 

In  this  connection  he  remarks : 

I  have  been  astonished,  at  r.  subsequent  passing  this  same  por- 
tion of  the  river,  and  then  too  under  pleasant  circumstances,  how 
much  of  the  zest  and  enjo\-ment  of  such  scenes  are  taken  away 
with  their  noveIt>'.^^^ 

"Under  such  circumstances,"  says  Mr.  Flint,  "this 
novel  and  fresh  scene  revived  those  delightful  images 
of  youth,  the  spring-time  of  existence,  which  are  most 

"Splint.     RecollectJons,  %e.  ^^^  —  Idem,  ii,  ^o,  91. 


SOJOURN  IN  ST.  LOUIS  87 

fondly  cherished  and  longest  remembered."  Charm- 
ing scenery,  delightful  air,  cheering  sunshine,  and  the 
majestic  view  of  the  Father  of  Waters,  pouring  his 
flood  between  wonderful  shores,  filled  all  of  the  en- 
thusiastic and  poetic  family  with  ecstasy.  They 
seemed  to  float  as  in  a  delicious  dream.  The  "huge 
sized  cotton-woods"  waved  in  strange  loveliness. 
Great  flocks  of  wild  ducks  and  other  game  birds  rose 
in  airy  flights  from  the  reeds  and  were  hardly  fright- 
ened by  the  discharge  of  their  guns.  There  were 
herds  of  deer  seen  now  and  then  bounding  through  the 
distant  thickets.  Everything  united  to  captivate  the 
senses  and  to  excite  the  fancy.  The  pungent  odor  of 
the  willow  flowers,  which  the  voyagers  crushed  in 
their  hands  as  they  grasped  the  overhanging  boughs 
to  aid  the  northward  motion  of  their  boat,  raised  in 
their  minds  mythological  ideas  of  "nectar  and  am- 
brosia." ^^'^ 

However,  even  this  stage  of  the  journey  was  not  all 
pleasure.  The  severe  and  dangerous  toil  of  working 
up  the  river,  beset  as  it  was  with  snags,  "sawyers," 
wreck  heaps  and  rocks,  soon  exhausted  the  physical 
energies  and  led  to  depression  of  spirits.  They  were 
more  than  once  half  a  day  struggling  with  all  the 
force  of  crew  and  passengers  in  order  to  drag  their 
heavily  laden  boat  past  a  single  rapid  or  difficult  place 
in  the  river.  At  best  they  wxre  only  creeping  up 
stream  and  making  about  twelve  miles  a  day."^ 

The  night  season  brought  not  only  rest  but  a  change 
of  scene  as  well.  All  hands  encamped  on  the  shore. 
Some  favorable  spot  was  selected,  camp  fires  built, 

116  Flint.     Recollections,  88-90.  ^^~ —  Idem,  92,  93. 


88  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

supper  cooked  and  couches  prepared  for  the  welcome 
repose  of  night.  But  before  rest,  came  the  social  hour 
of  the  camp.  The  almost  invariable  rule  was  that  the 
owner  of  the  boat  must  furnish  for  this  hour  the  usual 
rations  of  whiskey.  Mr.  Flint  probably  could  not 
have  resisted  this  custom  even  if  he  would  have  done 
so.  Some  of  the  boatmen  in  Mr.  Flint's  crew  had 
been  hunters  in  the  upper  world  of  the  Missouri. 
Others  had  been  "above  the  falls  of  St.  Anthony"  on 
the  Mississippi.  Some  had  been  in  Canada.  Still 
others  had  wandered  south  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  on 
the  Red  River  and  into  the  Spanish  country.  There 
were  stories  of  river  and  forest,  of  war  and  hunt,  of 
Spaniard  and  Frenchman.  There  were  tales  of  dusky 
loves  that  no  feature  of  romance  might  be  wanting, 
Mr.  Flint  says,  and  he  thought  the  stories  would  have 
made  tolerable  romances  if  they  had  been  "tricked 
out  in  the  dress  of  modern  description."  ^^^ 

"Shawnoe  Indians"  prowled  about  the  night  en- 
campment and  were  such  objects  of  terror  to  the  fam- 
ily they  received  little  "pleasure  from  the  spectacle." 
These  did  not  have  the  "tame  and  subdued  counte- 
nance of  the  northern  Indians"  with  whom  Flint  had 
become  acquainted  when  traveling  in  those  regions. ^^^ 
Desperadoes,  in  outlandish  attire,  armed  with  dirks, 
and  smelling  desperately  of  bad  liquors -"a  race  of 
men  placed  on  the  extreme  limits  of  order  and  civili- 
zation"-invaded  the  camp.  Not  unfrequently  some 
lawless  wretch,  minus  one  eye,  was  pointed  out  to 
Flint  as  a  victim  of  the  "gougers"  thumb.  But  the 
clergyman  was  assured  that  no  "gentleman"  w^as  in 

11^  Flint.     Recollections,   94,   95.  ii9—  Idem,  ^^. 


SOJOURN  IN  ST.  LOUIS  89 

danger  of  being  gouged.  This  was  "a  surgical  oper- 
ation" which  they  thought  "only  proper  to  be  prac- 
tised upon  black-guards,  and  their  equals." ''" 

Two  methods  of  locomotion  were  employed,  in 
propelling  a  boat  up  stream  when  poles  and  oars  did 
not  answer:  towing  and  "bush-whacking."  A  tow- 
line  or  "cordelle"  of  great  length  was  carried  by  every 
boat.  One  of  these  long  ropes  was  used  after  the 
manner  of  a  cable  on  a  canal-boat,  to  pull  the  boat  up 
stream  by  the  muscle  of  man.  The  "hands"  would 
toil  along  the  bank  tugging  at  the  "cordelle."  When 
they  came  to  the  mouth  of  a  tributary,  they  either 
swam  across,  holding  fast  to  the  line,  or  used  a  yawl  to 
carry  the  rope  across.  When  they  were  impeded  by 
a  bluff,  it  was  necessary  to  "warp"  or  cross  the  river 
to  the  low  ground  on  the  other  side.  "Bush-whack- 
ing" was  the  practice  of  pulling  the  boat  up  by  taking 
hold  of  overhanging  trees. 

Crossing  the  river  often  brought  no  relief  from  their 
difficulties.  When  the  current  was  unusually  swift 
or  the  ground  marshy  on  the  bank,  the  long  rope  was 
carried  far  ahead  and  attached  to  a  windlass.  The 
boat  and  the  boatmen  were  exposed  to  constant  perils. 
Mr.  Flint  remarks  that  he  had  never  taken  a  trip  on 
the  river  without  seeing  the  recent  wrecks  of  boats, 
and  the  red  shirted  bodies  of  drowned  boatmen  float- 
ing in  the  river.  Their  boat  was  several  times  in 
extreme  danger  from  the  high  current  and  from  fall- 
ing trees  along  the  banks.  The  family  often  walked 
on  the  shore  when  the  danger  was  considerable.  Once 
while  the  helmsman  talked  with  a  girl  on  shore  he 

120  Flint.     Recollections,  98. 


90  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

ran  on  to  a  snag  or  "sawyer,"  which  penetrated  the 
bow  of  their  boat  and  nearly  cost  them  their  cargo  if 
not  their  lives.'"' 

In  the  first  missionary  letter  from  St.  Louis/"  Mr. 
Flint  tells  that  he  made  most  of  his  way  on  foot  as  the 
boat  toiled  painfully  up  the  river,  and  that  he  could 
walk  faster  than  the  boat  traveled.  He  entered  the 
cabins  of  the  few  settlers  and  endeavored  to  learn  the 
moral  and  religious  condition  of  the  people.  The 
first  settlement  of  any  importance  was  the  old  town  of 
Ste.  Genevieve  where  there  was  some  little  progress 
and  comfort.  Below  this  he  found  the  people  with- 
out an  exception  destitute  of  the  Scriptures  and  all 
religious  advantages.  He  found  little  opportunity 
to  preach  during  the  ascent  of  the  Mississippi  but  he 
distributed  much  religious  literature  and  made  known 
the  name  of  missionary,  which  before  they  had  never 
heard.  At  Ste.  Genevieve  they  came  for  the  first 
time  upon  the  French  mode  of  constructing  houses 
and  forming  a  village.     He  says : 

The  greater  proportion  of  the  houses  have  mud  walls,  whitened 
with  lime,  which  have  much  the  most  pleasant  appearance  at  a 
distance.  Their  modes  of  building,  enclosing,  and  managing, 
are  very  unlike  those  of  the  American.  Here  the  French  is  the 
predominant  language.  Traces,  too,  of  their  regard  for  their 
worship  begin  to  be  seen.  You  see  the  Catholic  church.  On  the 
ridges  of  the  houses,  or  over  the  gates,  you  frequendy  see  the 
wooden  cross.^^* 

He  held  an  evening  service  at  Ste.  Genevieve  and 
had  a  large  audience  principally  of  Catholics,  in  spite 
of  their  priest's  opposition  to  Protestantism,  which 

^21  Flint.     Recollections,  91,  97. 

"2  July  2,  1816. 

12'  Flint.     Recollections,  100. 


SOJOURN  IN  ST.  LOUIS  91 

had  recently  been  revealed  by  his  order  that  all 
the  New  Testaments  sent  in  by  the  bible  societies, 
should  be  burned.  Mr.  Flint  had  such  a  cordial  re- 
ception and  invitation  to  settle  here  that  he  was  much 
inclined  to  do  so,  though  he  decided  that  he  would  at 
least  go  on  to  St.  Louis  and  confer  with  Mr.  Giddings 
before  he  made  his  final  location.  He  stopped  at 
Herculaneum,  half  way  to  St.  Louis,  and  had  a  cordial 
reception  there  also.^'* 

Mr.  Giddings  had  reached  St.  Louis  via  the  north- 
ern route  on  the  sixth  of  April,  a  few  weeks  before 
Mr.  Flint's  arrival. '""  The  latter  says  in  his  first  let- 
ter from  St.  Louis : 

We  arrived  here  the  13th  of  May.  Mr.  Giddings  had  left 
the  ground,  despairing  of  usefulness,  and  having  received  from 
the  people  the  most  pointed  neglect.  My  reception  was  also  cold. 
Mr.  G.  Blackburn  ^-^  had  recently  been  here,  and  had  made 
engagements  to  fix  himself  here  in  the  autumn.  He  evidently 
considered  the  mission,  as  standing  in  his  way.  He  had  made  use 
of  detraction,  intrigue,  and  every  engine,  that  he  could  move,  to 
prejudice  the  mission.^-'     He  alternately  lashed  the  eastern  peo- 

124  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Louis,  July  2,  1816. 

1-^  Norton,  Augustus  T.     History  of  the  Presbyterian  Churcli  in  Illinois, 

21,  33  ff-.  37,  5-- 

^-"  Reverend  Dr.  Gideon  Blackburn,  1772-1838,  a  well  known  and  leading 
Presbyterian  minister  of  Tennessee.  His  character  is  very  partially  and  un- 
fairly presented  in  this  letter.  Mr.  Flint  does  him  justice  later  in  his 
Recollections,  183,  184.  This  letter  gives  us  a  fair  picture  of  the  not  unusual 
estrangement  between  the  Middle  State  or  Western  Presbyterians  and  the 
New  England  Presbyterians  or  Congregationalists  as  they  were  called  later. 
See  further  on  these  points  Norton's  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 
Illinois.  See  also  Rev.  Abel  Flint's  letter  to  Mr.  Hempstead  (Hartford,  April 
30,  1818),  in  which  reference  is  made  to  Dr.  Blackburn's  attack  on  Rev.  Abel 
Flint  and  New  England  clergymen. 

^-"  The  mission  in  Missouri  that  was  founded  by  the  Missionary  Society 
of  Connecticut  was  the  result  in  good  part  of  the  visit  of  Samuel  J.  Mills  to 
St.  Louis  in  the  fall  of  1814.     Sec  Thomas  C.  Richards's  Samuel  J.  Mills, 


92  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

pie,  eastern  institutions,  and  especially  eastern  missionaries,  repre- 
senting, that  only  such  were  sent  out,  as  could  find  no  employ 
even  in  that  land  of  dullness.  He  even  brought  forward  the 
Hartford  Convention.  A  warning  was  inserted  in  the  news- 
papers, intimating  that  our  object  was  to  disseminate  the  politics 
of  Osgood  and  Parish.^'®  The  Americans  of  influence  are  gener- 
ally Tennesseeans  and  Kentuckians,  sufficiently  disposed  to  cherish 
prejudices  against  eastern  people.  From  this  variety  of  concur- 
ring causes,  I  found  almost  every  heart  closed  against  us.  Our 
situation,  the  while,  was  by  no  means  enviable.  You  know,  that 
my  whole  family  is  slender.  We  had  come  in  the  boat  900  miles, 
had  been  wet  and  scorched,  and  harassed  by  mosquitoes  and  wood 
ticks,  and  had  been  suffering  not  a  few  hardships,  privations  and 
fatigues.  No  house  was  open  to  us,  nor  was  even  a  hovel  to 
shelter  us  to  be  hired.  There  seemed  to  be  no  asylum  but  either 
the  hot,  leaky,  and  filthy  boat,  or  the  wilderness.  I  dispatched  a 
messenger  to  St.  Charles,  20  miles  up  the  Missouri,  but  every 
avenue  seemed  closed  up  there  also.  On  Sunday  Mr.  Hemp- 
sted,  and  Mr.  Giddings,  who  had  heard  of  our  arrival,  visited 
us,  and  we  were  once  more  cheered  with  the  sight  of  Xn  friends. 
I  went  from  the  boat  to  divine  service,  and  we  had  a  very  full 
audience,  I  went  out  to  Mr.  Hempsted's  farm  and  we  prayed  to- 
gether, and  sung  that  fine  hymn,  the  meeting  of  Xn  friends,  and 
our  communion  together  was  sweet.  Mr.  Giddings  declined 
preaching  here  any  longer.  The  field  was  unoccupied,  and  prov- 
idence seemed  to  have  rendered  it  necessary  for  me  to  fix  here. 

With  the  help  of  Mr.  Hempstead  and  a  young  man 
from  Massachusetts,  a  Mr.  Sawyer,  Timothy  Flint 
found  a  two  room  log  hut  for  which  he  had  to  pay 

Missionary,  Pathfinder,  Pioneer  and  Promoter,  153,  154.  Also  letter  of 
Samuel  J.  Mills  to  the  Missionary  Society  of  Connecticut,  St.  Louis,  Nov.  7, 
1814;  and  letter  of  Flint  to  Hempstead,  Cincinnati,  March  11,  1816. 

129  Probably  David  Osgood,  1747-1822,  and  Elijah  Parish,  1762-1825. 
The  former  was  a  distinguished  preacher  of  Massachusetts.  He  was  a 
zealous  Federalist  and  some  of  his  political  sermons  attracted  considerable 
notice.  Parish  was  also  a  Massachusetts  minister  and  greatly  interested  in 
politics.  His  election  sermon  in  18 10  criticised  the  government  so  severely 
that  the  legislature  refused  to  publish  it. 


SOJOURN  IN  ST.  LOUIS  93 

twelve  dollars  per  month.  They  lived  five  days  in 
the  boat  on  the  river.  While  in  the  harbor  they  had 
not  failed  to  be  interested  in  the  strange  craft  and 
people  from  all  sections  of  the  western  world. 

In  a  few  weeks'  time,  Mr.  Flint  found  his  audiences 
growing  and  the  people  softening  to  kindness.  He 
felt  that  there  was  a  good  prospect  of  overcoming 
prejudice  and  establishing  a  religious  society.  He 
did  some  preaching  during  the  summer  at  St.  Charles 
and  other  points.  He  also  took  hold  of  a  school 
which  Mr.  Sawyer  had  started  and  which  was  about 
to  fail  because  of  local  prejudice  and  the  timidity  of 
the  teacher.  The  school  was  conducted  jointly  by 
Mr.  Flint  and  Mr.  Sawyer.  It  must  have  been  suc- 
cessful from  the  number  of  Catholic  children  who 
were  in  attendance  and  who  remained  for  the  religious 
exercises  conducted  by  the  teachers.^""  Financially 
the  school  must  have  been  successful  for  Mr.  Flint 
received  one  hundred  and  twenty  dollars  as  his  share 
of  profits  for  the  summer.  Judged  by  the  same  stand- 
ard his  church  work,  for  less  than  four  months,  was 
successful -one  hundred  and  four  dollars  having  been 
raised  for  him  by  subscription."^ 

Mr.  Flint  confessed  that  he  was  anxious  to  establish 
his  school  and  mission  so  firmly  that  when  Doctor 
Blackburn  arrived  in  the  fall  with  his  teachers  and 
preachers,  he  would  find  the  ground  in  St.  Louis  fully 
occupied.  One  year  later,  however,  Mr.  Flint  writes 
that  they  have  united  their  forces  and  are  working  in 
harmony.     He  says:    "We  are  most  happily  agreed 

130  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Louis,  July  2,  1816, 

131  Letter  of  Oct.  10,  1816. 


94  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

in  sentiment  ami  in  the  distribution  of  our  labors." 
The  third  Thursday  in  November,  1817,  they  were 
to  form  a  Presbytery  at  St.  Louis  in  connection  with 
the  ^^'est  Tennessee  Synod.  The  Presbytery  was 
composed  of  the  t\vo  New  Englanders,  Giddings  and 
Flint,  Mr.  Mathews,  a  Pennsylvania  Presbyterian, 
and  Mr.  Donnell,  a  pupil  of  Doctor  Blaclvburn.'^"" 
Mr.  Donnell  was  later  settled  over  his  church  in  the 
"mine  district.''  southwest  of  St.  Louis. ^"^  The  only 
criticism  that  Mr.  Flint  makes  on  the  candidate  was 
that  he  had  the  measles.  It  was  most  likely  the  first 
Protestant  ordination  or  installation  service  in  that 
part  of  the  world. ^"*  If  Doctor  Blackburn  himself  had 
located  in  St.  Louis  as  he  intended,  it  is  not  likely  that 
this  early  and  happy  union  would  have  been  effected. 

It  was  only  six  weeks  after  his  arrival  in  St.  Louis 
that  Mr.  Flint  reported  himself  so  busy  with  school, 
pastoral  duties,  funerals,  and  preaching  tours  in  the 
country  that  he  had  little  time  to  write  and  was  at  the 
limit  of  his  strength.  He  found  the  burden  of  preach- 
ing much  heavier  here  than  in  the  east.     He  says: 

Extreme  caution  is  necessary  in  this  abandoned  country  even 
in  the  manner  of  performing  public  duty.  I  should  not  dare 
under  any  circumstances  to  use  notes.  The  eastern  missionaries, 
who  have  done  it  have  very  much  prejudiced  their  cause.  The 
people  here  have  a  vast  deal  of  effrontery,  and  Avill  not  pardon 

^^- Letter  of  Nov.  i,  1817.  See  furt'ner  concerning  the  misunderstanding 
between  Mr.  Flint  and  Doctor  Blackburn  in  the  letter  of  the  former  to  Mr. 
Hempstead  from  St.  Charles,  Nov.,  1816. 

133 —  Idem,  St.  Charles,  May  4,  1818.  Flint  says  of  this  district:  "I 
saw  in  the  excursion  and  in  the  many  families,  that  I  entered  in  the  mine 
district  far  more  encouraging  appearances,  than  I  have  noted  elsewhere  in 
this  country.  There  are  many  respectable  and  serious  families  from  Con- 
necticut.    You  will  fancj',  that  we  were  most  cordially  received." 

1'^  Flint.     Recollections,  127. 


SOJOURN  IN  ST.  LOUIS  95 

modesty  in  anyone.  A  frothy  and  turgid  kind  of  ready  eloquence 
is  characteristic  of  every  class  of  public  speaker.  I  have  broken 
over  all  early  habits,  and  have  triumphed  over  extreme  reluctance, 
and  against  my  own  taste  and  feelings,  have  become  all  things  to 
all  people,  as  far,  as  I  possibly  could.  They  think,  that  were  I 
not  extremely  feeble,  I  should  be  almost,  except  my  eastern  bonds, 
as  a  Kentuckian.^"' 

Contrary  to  his  hopes  he  found  living  expenses  here 
higher  than  in  Cincinnati  and  was  still  perplexed  by 
this  matter.  He  was  encouraged,  however,  when  he 
looked  back  over  the  long  and  expensive  way  that  he 
had  come,  for  it  seems  almost  as  if  the  ravens  had  pro- 
vided.^^' 

The  business  of  his  brother,  in  which  Mr.  Flint 
had  invested  about  one  thousand  dollars,  did  not  he 
says  occupy  any  of  his  time.  He  was  not  usually  in 
the  store  more  than  once  a  week.  It  proved  not  only 
an  unsuccessful  business  but  the  occasion  of  much 
criticism  later.  It  was,  very  possibly,  an  occasion  of 
hostility  to  his  ministry  at  this  time.^"^^ 

During  the  first  summer  Mr.  Flint  distributed  one 
hundred  and  fifty  Bibles,  part  of  them  French.  He 
observed  that  he  often  found  during  his  travels  large 
deposits  of  Bibles  in  the  hands  of  public  men,  who 
had  agreed  to  act  as  officers  of  the  societies  formed  by 
Mr.  Mills,  lying  unused,  while  there  were  many  fam- 
ilies all  about  without  a  copy  of  the  Sacred  Book.  He 
thought  political  men  poor  agents  for  such  work.^^* 

Toward  the  close  of  his  work  in  St.  Louis  he  held  a 
communion  service,  the  first  Protestant  service  of  the 

1"'' Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Louis,  July  2,  iSi6. 
^"^  —  Idem. 

1^^  Letter  written  from  St.  Charles,  June  4,  iRi3. 
1"*  Letter  from  St.  Louis,  July  2,  1816. 


96  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

kind  there.  The  people  were  from  all  states  and 
sects  and  each  one  thought  that  his  way  of  conducting 
the  ceremony  ought  to  be  adopted  and  was  scandalized 
that  so  much  concession  should  be  made  to  others. 
Mr.  Flint  thought  when  writing  nine  years  later ^^^ 
that  this  occasion  had  brought  out  in  an  unusual  way 
people's  attachment  to  form.  It  was,  however,  a  very 
solemn  and  affecting  service  and  he  thought  marked 
the  beginning  of  a  religious  profession  for  some  of  the 
younger  people."" 

In  this  connection,  Mr.  Flint's  remarks  about  the 
sects  beyond  the  Mississippi  are  interesting  to  notice. 
He  says : 

At  one  point  you  meet  with  a  respectable  Methodist,  and 
begin  to  feel  an  attachment  for  the  profession.  He  next  meets 
you  with  harmony  and  cooperation  on  his  lips,  and  the  next  thing 
you  hear,  is,  that  you  are  charged  with  being  a  fierce  Calvinist, 
and  that  you  preached  that  "hell  is  paved  with  infants'  skulls." 
While,  perhaps  the  society,  with  which  you  are  connected,  hear 
from  an  opposite  quarter  and  from  a  pretended  friend,  that  in 
such  a  sermon  you  departed  from  the  dicta  of  the  great  master, 
and  are  leading  the  people  to  the  gulph  [sici  of  Arminianism. 
The  Baptists  are  as  exclusive  as  in  the  older  regions.  Even 
among  our  own  brethren  [It  is  always  to  be  remembered  that 
the  New  England  missionaries  at  this  time  are  Presbyterians  as 
soon  as  they  cross  the  Alleghany  mountains,  and  by  a  process 
much  simpler  and  less  difficult  than  such  crossing.],  it  is  well 
known,  that  there  is  some  feeling  of  a  questionable  nature,  some 
rivalry  between  the  pupils,  the  doctors,  and  schools,  of  Andover 
and  Princeton. 

He  mentions  besides  the  usual  sects  the  followers  of 
Elias  Smith  and  speaks  of  numerous  other  would-be- 
founders  of  sects.     The  people  in  general  are  fully 

1^^  Flint.     Recollections,  112. 

"0  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Oct.  10,  1816. 


SOJOURN  IN  ST.  LOUIS  97 

persuaded  that  they  have  done  their  full  duty  toward 
a  preacher  when  they  have  listened  to  what  he  has 
to  say.''' 

The  western  missionary's  life,  he  thinks,  is  as  hard 
and  dangerous,  as  the  foreign.  He  laments,  that  when 
the  former  falls,  as  he  so  often  does,  he  is  unrecorded, 
though  he  "who  falls  in  a  foreign  land,  is  lamented  as 
a  hero  and  a  martyr.  Provision  is  made  for  his  fam- 
ily, and  the  enthusiasm  and  regret  of  romantic  sensi- 
bility attach  to  his  memory."  '*^ 

Mr.  Flint  removed  to  St.  Charles  early  in  Sep- 
tember. He  found  that  he  could  not  continue  his 
school  and  his  missionary  work,  and  he  preferred  to 
give  up  the  former.  St.  Charles  was  a  much  more 
central  location  for  the  circuit  of  preaching  points 
which  he  visited,  especially  up  the  Missouri  River. 
He  thought  that  at  this  point  where  the  great  rivers 
were  but  four  miles  apart  would  be  the  center  of  pop- 
ulation rather  than  at  St.  Louis.  It  was  then  the  polit- 
ical center  of  the  territory.  He  also  mentions  as  one 
of  the  reasons  for  his  leaving  St.  Louis  that  the  people 
there,  while  they  attended  his  service  in  good  numbers 
and  from  the  country  regions  round  about  were  for 
the  most  part  young  men  and  women  on  whom  all 
instruction  and  exhortation  seemed  wasted.  There 
was,  too,  "the  Catholic  mummery,"  the  ridiculousness 
of  which  was  only  exceeded  by  the  heedlessness  with 
which  it  was  witnessed  by  the  Catholics  themselves. 
Duels  were  continually  occurring  and  all  was  confu- 
sion and  uproar.  It  seemed  as  though  even  the  senti- 
ment of  a  God  was  universally  erased,  and  the  wick- 

'*!  Flint.     Recollections,  114,  115.         1*2 —  Idem,  115. 


q8  timothy    flint 

edness  of  the  place  threw  a  continual  gloom  over  his 
mind  which  he  felt  he  was  not  able  to  bear.  He  had 
not  lived  in  St.  Charles  and  it  at  least  looked  better  in 
these  respects  besides  having  the  advantages  above 
named. ""* 

In  later  days  and  in  more  philosophic  moments  Mr. 
Flint  speaks  more  favorably  of  the  Roman  Catholics, 
of  sectarianism,  and  even  of  the  moral  conditions  of 
this  new  country.  But  what  is  recorded  in  this  chap- 
ter is  out  of  the  immediate  and  bitter  experience  of 
the  man  in  the  midst  of  conditions  which  in  a  moral 
and  social  way  is  described  by  other  missionaries  and 
travelers  in  not  very  different  terms. ^** 

Mr.  Giddings  took  up  the  work  of  the  school  and 
pulpit  in  St.  Louis  upon  Mr.  Flint's  departure,  and 
thought  he  saw  signs  of  improvement  above  what  he 
had  first  found.  He  was  sufficiently  encouraged  to 
try  to  carry  on  the  work  unless  Doctor  Blackburn 
should  undertake  it  or  make  it  impracticable  for  him 
to  continue.    At  any  rate  Mr.  Giddings ""  was  the  mis- 

1*3  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Oct.  lo,  i8i6. 

1**  See  especially  Rufus  Babcock's  Memoirs  of  John  Mason  Peck  (Phil- 
adelphia, 1864),  85-88. 

1*5  Letter  of  Salmon  Giddings  to  the  Missionary  Society  of  Connecticut, 
St.  Louis,  Sept.  20,  1818. 

Mr.  Giddings  in  this  letter  gives  an  interesting  report  of  the  Presbyterian 
churches  in   Missouri  territory-. 

When  Formed 


Concord  Ch.,  Bellevievv  Aug.  3,  1816 
Bonhome  Oct  18,  i3i6 

St.  Louis  Nov.  15,  1817 

Union  Church  of  Rich- 
mond &  Dry  Creek        Apl.  17,  1818 
Church  of  Buffaloe  May,  i8iS 

Church  of  St.  Charles    Aug.  29,  18 18 


No.  of 

No. 

No. 

Present 

Baptized 

Members 

Re- 

Re- 

No. 

When 

moved 

ceived 

AdulU 

Infants 

Formed 

27 

8 

21 

40 

I 

12 

16 

5 

4 

15 

2 

6 

10 

S 

IS 

I 

2 

7 

7 

14 

14 

9 

9 

SOJOURN  IN  ST.  LOUIS  99 

sionary  there  for  a  number  of  years,  and  organized 
the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  November  15,  18 17. 
In  all  accounts  the  writer  has  seen,  Giddings  is  spoken 
of  as  the  first  resident  pastor  in  St.  Louis.  With  how 
much  justice  this  claim  is  made  can  only  be  judged 
when  we  consider  Mr.  Flint's  reports  to  the  Mission- 
ary Society  of  Connecticut.  Unfortunately,  Mr. 
Giddings's  reports  for  1816  and  1817  are  missing 
from  the  files  of  the  society. 


VI.      ST.  CHARLES  AND  SURROUNDING 
REGIONS 

Mr.  Flint  made  his  home  in  or  near  St.  Charles, 
Missouri,  for  four  years.  Three  of  these  years,  1816- 
18 19,  were  spent  in  missionary  and  ministerial  work. 
The  last  year,  1821-1822,  was  spent  on  a  farm  near 
St.  Charles.  At  present  the  missionary  period  only 
is  of  interest. 

For  this  time  we  have  a  greater  abundance  of  ma- 
terial than  for  any  other  of  his  life,  except  possibly,  the 
Cincinnati  years,  1827-1833.  One  hundred  pages  of 
the  Recollections  are  devoted  to  his  work,  experience, 
and  observations  here;  there  are  six  letters  written  to 
the  Missionary  Society  by  Mr.  Flint  from  St.  Charles, 
and  three  letters  written  to  the  same  society  at  this  time 
by  Reverend  Salmon  Giddings,  which  largely  con- 
cern Mr.  Flint. 

This  period  is  important  in  the  life  of  the  eastern 
minister  and  his  family  for  it  marks  the  notable  and 
painful  process  of  physical  and  social  acclimatization, 
which  all  had  to  undergo ;  a  process  which  often  meant 
death  on  one  hand  and  moral  disaster  on  the  other,  to  a 
fearfully  large  per  cent  of  the  western  home  seekers. 
A  few  months  after  his  arrival  we  notice  Mr.  Flint 
flattering  himself  that  he  had  so  far  adapted  himself 
to  the  western  ways,  as  to  be  almost  "like  a  Kentuck- 


I02  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

ian."  In  this  he  finds  himself  later  painfully  disap- 
pointed. 

This  period  is  important  again  because  of  Mr, 
Flint's  fully  recorded  experiences  in  the  new  and 
formative  society  of  which  he  was  a  part.  It  is  full 
of  significance  for  the  historian  and  the  student  of  so- 
ciety. We  can  do  no  more  than  mention  some  of  the 
things  that  seem  most  significant  from  this  point  of 
view,  since  they  are  not  vital  to  the  life  story  of  Tim- 
othy Flint. 

Mr.  Flint  traveled  constantly  and  widely  in  his  mis- 
sionary work  at  this  time,  going  frequently  along  the 
main  lines  of  travel,  fifty  and  one  hundred  miles  from 
his  home.  He  was  always  keenly  alive  to  all  that  was 
to  be  seen  and  heard.  These  experiences  were  not  lost 
or  greatly  changed  by  time.  It  has  been  of  much  in- 
terest to  the  writer  to  compare  the  reports  made  to  the 
Missionary  Society  of  Connecticut  and  the  impres- 
sions of  the  same  conditions  as  they  are  recorded  in  the 
Recollections  and  written  several  years  later  and  un- 
der very  different  circumstances.  There  is  a  difference 
of  course  but  it  is  easily  accounted  for  and  it  does  not 
argue  against  the  accuracy  and  finality  of  Mr.  Flint's 
judgment  upon  men  and  affairs. 

Of  those  things  of  general  interest  in  the  experi- 
ences and  records  of  Mr.  Flint  for  this  period,  the 
most  noticeable  is  the  emigration  of  the  times.  At  St. 
Charles  in  the  fall  of  1817,  there  was  an  average  of  one 
hundred  people  every  day  coming  to  the  town,  or 
passing  to  near-by  points.  Nearly  all  wxre  poor  and 
not  one  family  in  fifty  had  a  Bible.'*"     He  remarks  on 

i-*"*  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Nov.  i,  1817. 


MINISTRY  AT  ST.  CHARLES  103 

the  fads  which  seized  the  moving  streams  of  people 
to  go  to  a  certain  point  for  a  few  months,  as  the  Boon's 
Lick,  on  the  Missouri,  only  to  branch  off  in  a  few 
months  to  Salt  River.'''  He  speaks  of  the  instability 
of  the  population -no  one  felt  settled  enough  to  build 
a  good  house,  plant  an  orchard,  or  aid  in  building 
church  or  school.'**^  He  is  concerned  with  the  effect 
of  the  new  comers  on  the  old  and  settled  French  so- 
ciet}^  There,  all  the  vices  had  indeed  found  lodging, 
but  the  people  were  quiet  and  inoffensive  in  their  sins. 
But  with  the  flood  of  newcomers  all  gates  were  swept 
away.  A  movement,  that  was  well  under  way  for  the 
erection  of  a  meeting  house  in  St.  Charles  and  for  se- 
curing a  churchyard,  was  dissipated  by  the  inrush  of 
strangers.  The  revelry  of  the  dance  and  drinking 
places  continued  on  the  Sabbath  day  until  the  minister 
reported  the  condition  to  the  grand  jury.  The  jury 
acted  and  checked  the  disgrace.  But  the  revelers - 
and  only  a  fev^^  heads  of  families  did  not  have  a  part  in 
it- were  so  offended  with  the  disturber  of  their  pleas- 
ures that  they  soon  found  means  of  displacing  him."^ 
The  different  classes  of  frontiersmen,  emigrants, 
and  village  people  are  noted  and  commented  upon  at 
length.  Mr.  Flint  had  a  wide  experience  with  the 
Indians  in  these  years,  both  by  visiting  them  in  their 
villages,  and  in  seeing  great  councils  gather  at  St. 
Charles  for  conference  with  the  government  agents, 
and  for  trading  purposes.  They  came  from  the  west 
as  far  as  the  Rocky  Mountains.  He  was  greatly  in- 
terested in  these  native  peoples  and  made  a  close  study 

'^"      Flint.     Recollections,  203,  204. 

^■'^ —  Idem,  204,  206. 

1*3  Letters  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Aug.  3,  1817,  and  June  4,  1818. 


I04  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

of  them.*"*"  The  intermarriage  of  the  French  and  In- 
— ^<^dians,  with  its  results,  is  commented  upon/'^ 

The  methods  of  laying  out,  advertising,  and  selling 
real  estate,  farms,  and  town  sites  is  noticed/"  This 
description  seems  quite  modern  to  residents  of  the  re- 
cent west  and  to  the  present  day  investors  of  the  older 
states  who  have  been  tempted  to  buy  western  property. 
He  discusses  the  American  habit  of  "puffing"  and  es- 
pecially its  western  development  as  it  aflfects  the  news- 
papers, schools,  and  general  culture/^'  The  crudity 
and  the  cruelty  of  society  is  commented  upon,  causing 
on  the  one  hand,  an  entire  disregard  of  literature 
among  people  who  are  so  busy  with  merely  physi- 
cal things;  and  on  the  other  hand,  as  shown  in  the 
constant  dueling  and  frequent  murders/'*  These 
conditions  together  w  ith  rowdyism  and  the  violation 
of  the  Sabbath,  Mr.  Flint  thought,  were  quite  visibly 
and  immediately  affected  by  the  gathering  of  the  best 
elements  into  a  religious  society,  under  the  leadership 
of  competent  ministers.  He  wished  that  eastern 
people,  who  talk  about  the  felicity  of  a  country  with- 
out institutions  of  religion,  might  have  an  opportun- 
ity such  as  he  had  to  experience  that  imagined 
felicit>\''' 

Mr.  Flint  at  this  time,  and  in  all  his  writings  upon 
the  west,  brings  to  mind  a  fact  largely  forgotten  about 
the  westward  movemxent  of  populations,  namely,  the 

1^'^  See  his  Recollections,  135-164.     Also  the  Indian  JVars,  the  Geography 
and  History,  Daniel  Boon  and  the  Shoshonee  Valley. 
i''!  Flint.  Recollections,  131,  163. 
^^^  —  Idem,  130. 
i5a_  Idem,  185-188. 
154 —  Idem,  178-183. 
^'*'' Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Nov.  i,  1817 


MINISTRY  AT  ST.  CHARLES  105 

enormous  cost  in  human  suffering  and  life.  His  de- 
scription of  the  "seasoning"  fevers  which  invariably 
overtook  the  emigrant  of  w^hatever  age  or  physical 
condition,  brings  to  realization  the  price  that  v^as  paid 
in  making  the  west  to  blossom  and  to  build  up  its  civi- 
lization. Mr.  Flint  shows  his  subtle  power  of  analysis 
and  portraiture  in  describing  the  highly  wrought  men- 
tal states,  conditioned  by  fever  and  delirium.  For  ^■' 
two  months,  August  and  September,  1818,  he  was  him- 
self in  the  supposedly  fatal  grip  of  the  seasoning  fever. 
It  was  one  of  those  states  of  delirium  when  the  mind 
is  abnormally  acute.  He  could  repeat  verses  which 
were  impossible  for  him  under  normal  conditions. 
All  the  foreign  languages  he  had  studied  he  could 
use  with  surprising  facility.  All  care  and  concern 
for  life  had  passed  and  he  felt  as  though  in  a  dream 
world.  The  first  symptoms  of  returning  strength  and 
recall  to  earth  were  distressing.  The  spiritual  exhil- 
eration  and  renewal  which  remained  with  him  during 
and  after  convalescence,  show  the  fine  religious  and 
moral  balance  of  his  character  and  in  a  measure  ac- 
count for  the  noble  mastery  of  the  very  trying  episode 
noticed  in  the  closing  paragraphs  of  this  chapter.^^*^  .^ 
Still  one  other  thing  of  general  interest  is  more  I 
closely  related  to  this  period  of  his  western  experience 
than  to  any  other -the  mounds  and  other  relics  of  the 
prehistoric  American  races.  In  many  directions  of 
his  travels  he  noted  these  curious  ancient  formations, 
speculated  on  their  age  and  uses,  and  took  advantage 
of  evety -opportunity  to  examine  the  contents  of  the 
mounds,  ancient  settlements  and  cemeteries.     Near 

15®  Flint.     Recollections,   132-135. 


io6  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

St.  Charles  he  believed  there  had  once  been  a  very 
dense  population  as  he  believed  there  would  be  again. 
^^'hile  on  a  journey  up  the  Illinois  River  he  was  inter- 
ested in  the  mounds  in  the  Cahokia  prairie.  His  son 
Micah  probably  accompanied  his  father  at  this  time 
for  he  wrote  a  poem  on  these  mounds,  dated  March 
19,  1825,  which  Mr.  Flint  included  in  the  Recollec- 
tions.^"' Just  back  of  the  house  on  his  farm  below 
St.  Charles  at  Point  Prairie  or  the  Mamelle  there 
were  two  of  these  artificial  mounds.  While  digging 
a  ditch  in  this  vicinit^^,  the  Flints  discovered  some  in- 
teresting relics  which  he  describes,  together  with  relics 
found  near  St.  Louis  at  the  time  of  his  residence 
there.^'^* 

Mr.  Flint  was  always  interested  in  the  bar  and  gives 
us  his  impressions  of  several  leading  lawyers  of  the 
territory.'^**  There  were  two  sessions  of  the  legislature 
at  St.  Charles  during  his  residence  there.  He  says 
of  the  legislators: 

Some  of  them  were  neither  Solons  nor  Solomons.  Indeed,  in 
the  western  country  and  elsewhere  in  America,  they  do  not  believe 
in  the  maxim,  "ex  quolibet,"  etc. ;  almost  any  timber  can  be 
worked  into  the  political  ship.  Some  boys  invented  a  very  toler- 
able pasquinade.  It  was  labelled  on  the  plastering  around  the 
speaker's  chair.  "Missouri,  forgive  them.  The}'  know  not  what 
they  do."  .  .  I  was  here  [i.e.  in  the  state.  He  was  in  Jack- 
son in  1 82 1  when  Missouri  became  a  state]  when  the  state  of 
Missouri  passed  from  its  territorial  character  to  that  of  a  state. 
The  slave  question  was  discussed  with  a  great  deal  of  asperitj', 
and   no  person  from  the  northern  states,  unless  his  sentiments 

^^"  Flint.     Recollections,   167-169. 

^■^s  Flint.  History  and  Geography  of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  vol.  i,  126- 
129;  Recollections,  164-174. 

1S9  Flint.     Recollections,  184,  185. 


MINISTRY  AT  ST.  CHARLES  107 

were  unequivocally  expressed,  had  any  hope  of  being  elected  to 
the  convention,  that  formed  the  constitution.  The  constitution 
was  well  enough,  except  in  its  stupid  interdiction  of  ministers 
from  being  eligible  to  any  office  in  the  state,  and  in  some  other 
trifling  enactions  equally  barbarous.^*"' 

Of  preachers  as  he  met  them  at  this  time,  he  says: 
"Of  the  itinerant  preachers,  I  did  not  hear  one  who 
approached  to  mediocrity.  They  may  have  been  pious 
men,  but,  for  the  most  part,  they  defy  all  criticism." 
He  several  times  speaks  of  a  minister  in  St.  Louis, 
who  was  for  a  time  popular  as  an  orator,  and  who 
made  great  pretense  of  learning  and  as  a  teacher.  He 
does  not  name  him  but  it  was  probably  John  Mason 
Peck  that  was  in  mind.  Mr.  Flint's  estimate  of  this 
pioneer,^**^  if  it  be  he,  is  not  as  high  as  the  present  gen- 
eration would  rate  him,  judging  him  by  his  life  work. 

The  Reverend  Dr.  Blackburn,  who  figured  so  con- 
siderably in  the  anticipations  of  Mr.  Flint  and  his 
companion,  Mr.  Giddings,  is  spoken  of,  as  one  of  the 
western  type  of  preachers.     He  says: 

I  heard  the  Rev.  Dr.  B.  the  favorite  orator  of  Tennessee, 
preach.  I  would  not  wish  to  laud  him  in  the  same  affected  strain, 
with  the  encomiums  of  the  blind  minister  of  Virginia.  But  he  is 
certainly  an  extraordinary  man  in  his  way.  His  first  appearance 
is  against  him,  indicating  a  rough  and  uncouth  man.  He  uses 
many  low  words,  and  images  and  illustrations  in  bad  taste.  But 
perhaps,  when  you  are  getting  tired,  almost  disgusted,  everything 
is  reversed  in  a  moment.  He  flashes  upon  j^ou.  You  catch  his 
ej'e  and  you  follow  him ;  he  bursts  upon  you  in  a  glow  of  feeling 

160  pjiiif      RecoUeclions,   214,   215. 

T»i  —  Idem,   183. 

Mr.  Peck  speaks  more  plainly  and  even  less  justly  of  Mr.  Flint.  He  says 
that  his  sermons  while  good  and  sometimes  eloquent  were  borrowed  from 
published  sources  such  as  Burder's  Village  Sermons.  See  Houck's  History 
of  Missouri,  vol.  iii,  229,  230. 


io8  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

and  pathos,  leaving  you  not  sufficiently  cool  to  criticise.  We 
may  affect  to  decry  the  talent  of  movin<;  the  inmost  affections. 
After  all,  I  am  inclined  to  think  it  the  most  important  qualifi- 
cation, which  a  minister  can  possess.  He  possesses  this  in  an 
eminent  degree.  He  has  the  electric  eye,  the  thrilling  tones,  the 
unction,  the  feeling,  the  universal  language  of  passion  and  nature, 
which  is  equally  understood  and  felt  by  all  people.  He  has  evi- 
dently been  richly  endowed  by  nature ;  but  his  endowments  owe 
little  to  discipline  or  education. '^- 

Rather  a  generous  criticism,  is  it  not,  of  a  man  who 
had  warned  the  people  as  Doctor  Blackburn  had  done 
in  St.  Louis,  against  "the  New  England  emissaries  of 
^,the  Hartford  Convention." 

He  adds  a  word  about  the  New  England  preachers : 
there  are  a  few  of  them,  "plain  men,  of  sound  instruc- 
tion and  good  sense,  who  are  respected  for  these  quali- 
fications, but  are  not  popular  as  orators.""^ 

We  must  turn  now  to  things  more  intimately  con- 
nected with  Mr.  Flint.  Among  the  earliest  difficul- 
ties in  the  new  work  at  St.  Charles  was  that  of  finding 
a  place  to  live.  Rent,  Mr.  Giddings  says,  cost  the 
Flint  family  twelve  to  twenty  dollars  per  month.  His 
total  income  from  his  professional  labors  for  the  two 
full  years  of  service  here  was  considerably  under  four 
hundred  dollars  annually.  During  his  first  year  in 
the  territory,  he  lived  in  six  different  houses.  Then 
he  was  driven  out  of  a  comfortable  cottage,  by  a  "pow- 
erful Kentuckian  with  a  host  of  negroes,"  into  a  thir- 
teen by  fourteen  foot  log  hut  with  a  ground  floor,  and 
Mrs.  Flint's  school  for  young  ladies  was  broken  up. 
It  was  at  this  time  that  the  family  set  about  to  secure  a 
house  of  their  own,  as  a  measure  of  economy  and  neces- 

162  Flint.  Recollections,  183,  184. 

163  _    J^t;fn^    ig^. 


MINISTRY  AT  ST.  CHARLES  109 

sity,  after  having  moved  four  times  in  a  year/"*  Upon 
this  house  the  minister  labored  with  his  own  hands 
during  the  week,  to  the  scandal  of  some  of  his  southern 
neighbors."^  In  the  new  cottage  the  school  was  re- 
sumed. Some  of  their  most  pleasant  experiences 
and  friendships  came  through  their  schools.'"" 

Bible  and  tract  distribution  continued  to  be  an  im-^ 
portant  part  of  his  work.  He  apparently  thought  it 
even  more  effective  than  preaching.  He  gives  some 
incidents  of  its  efifectiveness.  He  had  as  high  as  twen- 
ty calls  in  one  day  for  Bibles.  He  thought  five  hun- 
dred would  not  satisfy  the  demands."^  Mr.  Giddings 
had  a  similar  experience.  Mr.  Flint  had  at  this  time 
published  his  collection  of  hymns.  He  was  teaching 
the  people  to  sing  them,  being  usually  his  own  chor- 
ister as  all  western  ministers  were  at  that  time.  He 
occasionally  opened  a  preaching  point  at  some  new 
place,  nearby  or  as  far  as  forty  miles  up  the  Missouri, 
and  again  thirty  miles  up  the  Mississippi,  at  Cuivre. 
At  this  latter  point  seven  persons  wished  to  form  a 
church  society  and  a  like  number  at  St.  Charles  wished 
to  take  the  same  step.  Mr.  Flint  discouraged  this 
move,  thinking  the  numbers  too  small  and  their  indi- 
vidual character  unfit  for  so  important  an  undertak- 
ing. He  did  urge  however,  the  building  of  churches 
or  meeting  houses."^  This  cautious  disposition  is  one 
of  the  charges  later  against  Mr.  Flint- as  showing  in- 
competency.    He  reports  audiences  at  all  points  as 

i«*  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Nov.  i,  1817. 

J«=  Letter  of  Jan.  4,  1818. 

^^^  Flint.     Recollections,  194-197. 

167  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  April  15,  1817. 

'^^'^  Idem.     Also  letters  of  Aug.  3,  18x7  and  June  4,  1818. 


no  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

growing  during  the  First  year,  and  it  would  seem  that 
he  was  always  regarded  in  this  section  as  an  eloquent 
and  able  preacher.  Mr.  Giddings  so  regarded  him. 
In  the  second  year  Flint  says,  that  to  speak  accurately 
he  must  say  that  his  audiences  are  not  growing,  except 
at  Bonhomc,  where  a  church  was  organized  October 
1 8,  i8i6.^""  He  was  compelled  to  say  also  that  moral 
conditions  were  no  better.  He  felt  that  there  had 
been  too  much  coloring  of  missionary  reports  in  order 
to  suit  the  eastern  constituency  of  the  society.  There 
were  occasional  cases  of  seriousness  which  he  reported 
from  time  to  time  but  the  burden  of  sin  seemed  to  bear 
down  with  crushing  force  at  this  period. 

During  part  of  his  St.  Charles  labors  he  turned  pe- 
destrian, both  from  motives  of  economy  and  health. 
He  w^alked  eighty  miles  in  one  week,  and  in  seven 
weeks  crossed  the  Missouri  sixteen  times.  One  year 
he  did  not  receive  more  than  enough  money  south  of 
the  river  to  pay  his  ferriage.  It  was  ahvays  danger- 
ous and  many  people  lost  their  lives  in  crossing  this 
river,  yet  he  came  to  love  the  muddy  stream  so  much 
that  when  he  returned  to  it  after  an  absence  of  two 
years  he  wrote  some  of  his  most  interesting  lines  upon 
it.^^" 

He  was  continually  occupied  from  daw^n  until  ten 
at  night.  His  frail  wife  w^as  not  less  driven  with  her 
school  and  home  duties.  Many  of  his  business  letters, 
and  letters  to  his  friends  were  written  on  a  plank  in 
some  cabin  during  his  journeys  in  the  country.^"     He 

1^^  Letter  of  Salmon  Giddings,  Sept.  20,  1818;  a!«o  of  Timoihy  Flint. 
May  4,  1818. 

I'^o  Flint.     Recollections,  289-391. 

I'l  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  April  15,  1S17. 


MINISTRY  AT  ST.  CHARLES  in 

had  often  been  lost  on  the  prairies,  and  again  he  had 
been  charmed  with  the  glory  of  the  prairie  fires,  as 
seen  in  the  distance  at  night. 

In  spite  of  his  philosophy,  breadth,  and  geniality, 
the  evils  about  him,  and  the  burdens  upon  him,  to- 
gether with  his  natural  disposition  for  plain  speech, 
and  his  New  England  notion  of  the  ministry,  led  the 
missionary  to  such  pointed  condemnation  of  the  open 
sins  of  his  village  and  to  take  such  steps  against  them, 
that  during  the  second  year  of  his  residence,  he  had 
almost  the  entire  community  hostile  to  him.  Even  his 
friends  at  other  places  and  his  fellow  ministers  joined 
in  the  condemnation."'  He  says  he  did  not  then  speak 
French  well  enough  to  preach  in  it  but  that  he  could 
and  did  use  it  to  reprove  and  warn.  He  declares  that 
Hindustan  can  not  be  more  heathen  than  is  their  vil- 
lage, and  it  is  not  worse  than  others.  In  his  letter  of 
April  15, 1817,  he  gives  the  following  picture  of  moral 
conditions: 

The  sinners  are  most  of  them  the  worst  of  all  -  Gospel  sin- 
ners -  who  have  relinquished,  and  lost  all,  that  they  once  had,  or 
knew,  or  heard  in  a  more  favored  country.  The  sick  have  no 
guidance  -  the  dying  no  voice  of  prayer.  The  dead  are  carried 
unhonored,  and  almost  unmourned  to  their  long  home.  There  is 
not  to  my  knowledge  a  consecrated  American  burial  ground  in 
the  whole  territory'.  I  tremble  for  the  influence  of  the  general 
example  upon  my  family  and  myself;  and  I  am  here  feeble,  and 
alone  to  contend  for  the  cause  of  the  blessed  Redeemer.  When 
my  own  heart  is  discouraged  and  cold,  and  these  periods  return 
too  often,  I  am  ready  to  imagine,  that  there  is  in  the  very  atmos- 
phere, which  w^e  respire  here,  a  moral  miasma  fatal  to  religious 
sensibility.  As  for  natural  sensibility,  I  am  sure  there  is  little 
here.     The  people  have  all  broken  the  tenderest  ties  in  coming 


^"2  Letters  of  S.  Giddings,  St.  Louis,  Jan.  5,  March  21,  and  May  23,  i8i8. 


112  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

here.  They  have  all  witnessed  great  trials,  and  difficulties  in 
passing  these  wide  wildernesses.  They  have  witnessed  the  dread- 
ful atrcKities  of  the  savages.  They  have  to  struggle  with  the 
obstacles  peculiar  to  a  new  country,  and  scenes  of  suffering,  which 
make  the  hardest  eastern  heart  thrill,  produce  here  no  impression. 

A  man  who  could  feel  and  write  in  this  strain  would 
be  sure  to  do  some  preaching,  which  would  go  close 
home.  So  strongly  does  he  feel  that  he  is  doing  no 
good  that  he  writes  in  August  of  this  year  that  he 
must  soon  cease  to  take  any  money  from  the  society. 
He  thinks  it  is  consecrated  money  and  should  not  be 
wasted  where  it  is  in  no  way  appreciated.  It  was 
at  this  time  that  he  attacked  the  Sunday  balls.  The 
first  day  he  preached  here,  there  had  been  a  horse  race 
which  started  ofif  just  as  he  rode  up  to  the  preaching 
place,  and  but  a  few  yards  away.'"  But  the  Sunday 
balls  as  a  new  and  regular  thing  were  more  than  he 
could  stand.  He  wrote  to  the  secretary  of  the  Mis- 
sionary Society  of  Connecticut  that  he  had  threatened 
to  report  the  offenders  to  the  grand  jury.  Later  he 
did  so  and  they  were  punished  by  authority  of  the 
law.  This  extreme  measure  together  with  some  other 
grievances  against  Mr.  Flint  brought  his  labors  to  a 
close. 

The  whole  story  is  told  in  three  of  Mr.  Giddings's, 
letters  to  the  Missionary  Society  of  Connecticut."* 
It  is  a  painful  story,  even  as  read  in  these  almost  cen- 
tury old  letters.  They  are  ungenerous  letters,  reflect- 
ing on  the  judgment  of  a  good  man.  gone  more 
than  three  quarters  of  a  century  to  his  reward.     Had 

1^3  Flint.    Recollections,  125. 

1^*  See  note  172.  See  also  letter  of  Rev.  Abel  Flint  (Hartford,  April 
30,  i8i8),  to  Mr.  Hempstead.  The  latter  had  reported  some  of  Mr.  Flint's 
difficulties  to  the  Missionary  Society  of  Connecticut. 


MINISTRY  AT  ST.  CHARLES  113 

it  not  been  for  his  full  reporting  of  the  matter  to  the 
Missionary  Society,  we  should  have  been  in  ignorance 
of  any  special  difficulties  in  Mr.  Flint's  life  at  this 
time,  or  of  the  part  which  Mr.  Giddings  had  in  the 
matter,  a  part  which  clearly  led  to  Flint's  resignation 
of  his  mission.  This  result  was  not  expected  nor  de- 
sired by  Mr.  Giddings.''"  Although  he  was  younger 
than  Mr.  Flint,  had  thirteen  or  fourteen  years  less 
experience  in  the  ministry,  and  had  gone  west  later 
than  Mr.  Flint,  Mr.  Giddings  constituted  himself, 
apparently,  the  head  of  the  mission.  In  this  capacity, 
it  appears  that  he  had  reported  to  Reverend  Abel 
Flint,  secretary  of  the  Missionary  Society  of  Connec- 
ticut, late  in  18 17,  that  there  were  damaging  rumors 
afloat  concerning  Mr.  Flint.  The  secretary  asked  for 
particulars.  Mr.  Giddings  had  not  expected  to  have 
his  remarks  about  his  neighbor  taken  so  seriously  and 
he  was  reluctant  about  going  into  details.  However, 
this  request  led  Giddings  to  report,  January  5,  1818, 
that  the  rumors  had  grown  and  that  the  people  were 
universally  prejudiced  against  Mr.  Flint.  For  rea- 
sons which  Giddings  names  but  which  charity 
forbids  us  to  mention  he  did  not  at  this  time  make  a 
detailed  statement.     In  March,  however,"*  he  made 

^^°  Salmon  Giddings,  1782-1828,  was  a  native  of  Hartford,  Conn.,  grad- 
uated at  Williams  College,  T811,  and  at  Andover  Theological  Seminary,  1814. 
He  was  tutor  for  one  year  at  Williams  after  his  theological  course  and  then 
went  to  St.  Louis  under  the  Missionary  Society  of  Connecticut,  arriving  a 
few  weeks  before  the  Flint  family.  He  seems  to  have  been  a  plain,  honest, 
plodding  man  of  ordinary  abilities,  not  physically  strong  but  faithful  and 
largely  efficient  in  the  new  world  where  his  few  years  of  work  were  accom- 
plished. On  Giddings's  life  and  work  see  Augustus  T.  Norton's  History 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  State  of  Illinois,  21,  33  fl.,  37,  52.  J.  E. 
Roy's  "Salmon  Giddings"  in  Neio  Englander  (New  Haven,  1874),  vol. 
xxxiii,   513-532. 

1^*5  Letter  of  S.  Giddings,  St.  Louis,  March  21,  1818. 


114  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

a  particuhir  statement.  The  charges  against  Mr. 
Flint  summed  up  by  the  writer  after  he  had  investi- 
gated them  are:  ''He  is  a  Speculator,  Avaricious, 
Immoral  and  of  course,  not  a  Christian."  Mr.  Gid- 
dings  says  further  in  this  letter  that  he  has  investigated 
many  of  the  worst  reports,  traced  them  to  their  origin, 
'*and  found  them  to  be  the  oflspring  of  malice  and 
without  foundation,  or  at  least  very  little  to  make  any 
of  them  from." 

Two  months  later ^'^  Mr.  Giddings  reports  that 
there  is  not  nearly  so  much  talk,  feeling  has  subsided 
and  that  the  better  class  of  people  have  restored  Mr. 
Flint  in  their  good  opinion.  He  thinks  that  the  talk 
will  blow  over  entirely  and  he  hopes  that  Mr.  Flint 
may  be  retained  in  the  mission.  He  is  very  uncom- 
fortable over  his  part  in  the  affair  and  adds  a  closely 
written  note,  and  a  cross  line  postscript  to  explain 
himself.  But  it  was  too  late  to  recall  what  he  had 
said  and  done.  It  seems  to  have  been  the  mistake  of 
an  honest  but  overofficious  and  inexperienced  man, 
zealous  for  the  success  of  the  common  w'ork. 

The  grounds  for  all  the  charges  had  been,  Mr. 
Flint's  plain  speaking,  his  rebuking  of  outbreaking 
sins,  his  connection  with  a  business  enterprise  at  St. 
Louis,  his  endeavors  to  extricate  himself  from  the  debt 
that  had  resulted  from  his  business  failure  and  his 
family  expenses,  and  especially  his  purchase  and  loca- 
tion of  a  land  claim  on  an  island  above  the  town,  where 
the  people  had  long  been  accustomed  to  get  their 
wood  supply  at  the  expense  of  the  government.  Here, 
when  he  forbade  the  removal  of  timber,  Mr.  Flint  ran 
squarely  against  the  age  long  and  instinctive  belief  of 

3^7  Letter  of  May  23,  181S. 


MINISTRY  AT  ST.  CHARLES  115 

European  peoples  that  public  lands  are  Commons  and 
that  any  public  or  private  interference  with  these 
rights  should  be  resented  vigorously.  He  speedily 
disposed  of  this  claim  and  re-located'"*  below  the 
town  at  Point  Prairie. 

Mr.  Flint  did  not  know  until  the  third  of  June  that 
his  difficulties  had  been  reported  to  the  Society.  He 
probably  heard  of  it  from  Mr.  Giddings  while  he  was 
at  St.  Louis  where  he  had  regular  preaching  appoint- 
ments, on  days  when  Mr.  Giddings  was  absent.  Mr. 
Flint  does  not  connect  his  fellow  missioner  with  the 
reports,  but  lays  the  responsibility  on  a  Mr.  Beebe 
who  had  lately  been  in  Hartford.  The  letter*  in 
which  Mr.  Flint  resigns  his  mission  and  reviews  his 
work  with  the  society,  and  in  which  he  refers  briefly 
to  the  charges  made  against  him,  is  in  many  ways  the 
best  now  extant. 

Judged  by  this  letter  and  by  his  remarks  in  his  Rec- 
ollections several  years  later,  Mr.  Flint  did  not  give 
Mr.  Giddings  the  slightest  occasion  to  confirm  his 
notion  that  he  was  a  man  of  quick  or  uncontrolled 
temper.''^  Mr.  Flint  declared  that  he  had  loved  Mr. 
Giddings,  that  he  had  put  his  pride  under  and  yielded 
to  his  judgment  in  matters  pertaining  to  the  mission 
and  that  he  had  taken  the  place  assigned  to  him -that 
of  a  subordinate.  Mr.  Giddings  letters  also  show 
that  this  was  the  relationship  between  them.  Mr. 
Flint  makes  no  elaborate  attempt  to  defend  or  explain 
himself  and  takes  a  dignified  and  grateful  leave  of  the 
Missionary  Society.^*" 

i'**  Mr.  Gidding's  letter  of  March  21,  1818. 

*  See   Appendix   B. 

170  Letter  of  Jan.  5,  1818. 

180  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  June  4,  1818. 


VII.     ON  THE  GREAT  RIVER  AND  THE 
ARKANSAS 

Very  soon  after  he  resigned  his  mission  in  June, 
1818,  Mr.  Flint  was  taken  ill  and  had  the  long  sick- 
ness to  which  reference  has  already  been  made.  He 
was  unconscious  for  thirty  days.^^^  Mr.  Giddings 
visited  him  at  the  end  of  August  and  says: 

Mr.  Flint  has  a  severe  turn  of  sickness.  For  about  four  days 
the  physicians  did  not  think  he  would  live  from  one  day  to  an- 
other. His  life  was  despaired  of.  He  is  mending  or  was  the  last 
I  heard  from  him.  I  saw  him  about  two  days  after  his  fever 
abated.  He  appeared  much  resigned,  and  said  he  thought  he  had 
enjoyed  much  of  the  presence  of  God  during  his  sickness  but 
appeared  confident  that  he  should  not  recover.^**-' 

In  this  letter,  Mr.  Giddings  reports  that  they  had 
organized  a  church  at  St.  Charles  on  the  twenty-ninth 
of  August,  two  days  after  their  Presbytery  met.  He 
named  the  eight  people  who  formed  the  church  and 
remarks  that  the  step  had  the  entire  approbation  of 
Mr.  Flint.  He  says  also  that  the  people  of  the  St. 
Charles  church  told  him,  at  the  time  their  church  was 
formed,  that  they  would  no  longer  consider  them- 
selves under  Mr.  Flint's  care.'^'  It  appears  however, 
that  the  local  prejudice  against  Mr.  Flint  was  rapidly 
passing,  and  that  it  was  a  case  of  "Ill-will"  and  "Pre- 

181  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 

182  Letter  of  S.  Giddings,  St.  Louis,  Sept.  20,  i8i8. 
is.'i  —  Idem, 


ii8  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

judice"  pouring  dirt  on  "Mr.  Goodman.''  It  seems 
most  probable  that  Mr.  Flint  continued  to  preach  in 
St.  Charles,  after  his  recovery  and  until  he  left  for  the 
south.  While  he  was  preparing  to  go  down  the  Mis- 
sissippi, a  subscription  for  him,  as  pastor  of  the  church, 
was  started  and  so  liberally  supported,  that  he  says  it 
would  have  induced  him,  together  w^ith  other  con- 
siderations, to  have  remained  in  St.  Charles,  had  he 
known  it  in  time.'"* 

St.  Charles  was  one  of  the  places  which  had  strong 
attractions  for  Mr.  Flint.  There  was  a  high  bench 
above  the  town,  looking  far  over  the  valley  and 
prairie,  and  a  favorite  place  of  meditation.  He  had 
often  thought  to  finish  his  career  here,  and  had  found 
the  place  where  he  hoped  his  ashes  would  rest.  There 
were  some  very  warm  friends  in  the  community  and 
the  place  had  become  home  to  the  wanderers.^^^ 

Mr.  Flint  had  for  several  months  been  in  corres- 
pondence with  people  in  the  south  about  church  and 
school  work.  As  early  as  August,  1817,  he  had  an 
invitation  from  "Rapide  on  Red  river."  He  had 
also  at  this  time  an  invitation  to  go  to  Alabama,  and 
another  to  go  to  Washington,^.neaiuNatG45ez^:J\lissis- 
^si£pi.  Two  things  were  pulling  him,  the  hope  of 
adequate  support,  and  a  populous  "country  in  a  reli- 
gious point  of  view  unexplored. "^'^^  This  last  place 
was  finally  decided  upon,  but  the  journey  could  not 

^**  Flint.     Recollections,  215,  216. 

^** —  Idem.     Also  letter  from  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 

Bryan  and  Rose's  Pioneer  Families  of  Missouri  has  an  interesting  and 
complimentary  sketch  of  Mr.  Flint  which  seems  to  be  made  from  local  tra- 
ditions. It  speaks  of  his  opening  a  farm  on  the  Marais  Croche  Lake  where 
he  raised  cotton  and  made  wine  from  wild  grapes. 

^s*"  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Aug.  3,  1817. 


RIVER  JOURNEYS  119 

begin  in  the  fall  of  1818  as  they  had  intended,  because 
of  the  sickness  and  slow  recovery  of  Mr.  Flint. 

In  April,  1819,  they  were  ready  to  depart  for  the 
low  country.  It  was  a  "solemn  leave"  that  they  took 
of  their  home  and  friends.'"  Three  years'  residence 
in  a  new  community  go  farther  toward  the  making  of 
a  home  than  double  that  time  can  do  in  an  older  so- 
ciety. And  this  family  was  a  home-loving  one,  though 
they  were  never  to  know  a  place  as  their  own,  while 
Mr.  Flint  lived,  for  more  than  a  few  years  at  a  time. 

The  family  embarked  upon  a  very  large  keelboat 
with  an  ignorant  patron.  They  met  with  disaster 
upon  disaster  from  the  first  of  their  journey.  Only  a 
few  miles  down  the  river,  at  Bellefountaine,  they  ran 
aground,  and  were  extricated  by  the  help  of  a  file  of 
soldiers  from  the  garrison.  At  the  mouth  of  the  Mis- 
souri they  were  carried  among  the  sawyers  and  nar- 
rowly escaped  wreck.  We  were  he  says,  "like  to  be 
sunk  in  the  harbor  at  St.  Louis  by  a  leak  in  the  bottom 
of  our  boat,  which  commenced  in  a  dark  and  stormy 
night."  Opposite  "Flour  Island"  they  were  struck 
by  an  unusually  severe  storm  which  wrecked,  in  their 
sight,  two  other  boats  and  drowned  the  occupants. 
Their  boat  was  old  and  frail  and  its  escape  at  this  time, 
and  a  few  days  later  "opposite  the  middle  Chickasaw 
blufif,"  when  it  was  caught  in  an  eddy  of  the  swollen 
river  and  almost  broken  in  two,  seemed  miraculous. 
In  this  eddy  a  few  days  earlier  a  boat  had  been  broken 
and  wrecked.  They  were  witnesses  of  a  fourth 
wreck  before  they  had  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Ar- 
kansas, five  hundred  miles  down  the  Mississippi.     It 

1*'^  Letter  of  Jan.  15,  1822. 


120  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

was  again  proving  itself  the  "wicked- river"  as  the 
boatmen  called  it/"" 

On  the  fifth  of  May  they  reached  the  White  River 
in  Arkansas.  Mr.  Flint  says  of  this  event  in  his  Rec- 
ollections: 

We  were  swept  round  by  the  strong  current  of  the  Mississippi 
in  our  keel-boat  between  two  green  islands  covered  with  rushes 
and  cotton-wood  trees,  into  a  small  bay  which  received  the  waters 
of  White  River.  This  is  all  a  region  of  deep  and  universal  inun- 
dation. There  was  from  six  to  ten  feet  water  over  all  the  bot- 
toms ;  and  we  had  a  wide  display  of  that  spectacle  so  common  in 
the  spring  on  the  Mississippi,  a  dense  forest  of  the  largest  trees, 
vocal  with  the  song  of  birds,  matted  with  every  species  of  tangled 
vegetation,  and  harboring  in  great  numbers  the  turkey-buzzard, 
and  some  species  of  eagles ;  and  all  this  vegetation  apparently  ris- 
ing from  the  bosom  of  dark  and  discolored  waters.  I  have  never 
seen  a  deeper  forest  except  of  evergreens. 

The  waters  of  the  White  River  were  so  clear  that 
they  could  see  the  great  catfishes  among  the  smaller 
fishes  of  all  kinds.  But  no  baited  hook  could  tempt 
them."" 

From  the  White  River  they  soon  passed  by  a  cross 
channel  to  the  Arkansas  River.  They  had  planned  to 
go  up  this  river  to  the  "Post"  some  fifty  miles  distant 
by  water,  and  leave  a  consignment  of  tracts  and  Bibles 
which  they  had  for  the  new  territory.  They  were 
met  at  the  point  where  they  struck  the  Arkansas  River, 
or  near  there,  by  some  prominent  people  of  the  "Post" 
who  persuaded  them  to  try  this  place  as  a  location  for 
their  mission.  Mrs.  Flint  was  sick  at  the  time  and 
they  had  enough  of  experience  in  these  new  regions 
to  know  that  it  would  be  well  to  go  to  the  south  by 

is^  Flint.     Recollections,  217-219,  also  letter  frcin  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15, 1822. 
^^^  Flint.  Recollections,  252-354. 


RIVER  JOURNEYS  121 

stages/"''  So  it  was  decided  to  spend  at  least  the  first 
summer  at  the  "Post"  before  continuing  to  Natchez. 

Mr.  Flint  noticed  that  the  Arkansas  River  marked 
the  border  of  a  new  climate.'"'  The  river  itself 
interested  him  greatly.  He  speaks  of  its  reddish 
waters,  the  narrow  strips  of  land  which  formed  the 
banks  on  either  side  and  through  which,  during  the 
high  waters,  the  river  poured  at  frequent  intervals 
into  the  swamps  and  lagoons  which  flanked  it.  These 
bayous  and  lagoons  he  found  conforming  to  the  curves 
of  the  river,  and  when  they  were  full  during  the  spring 
floods,  they  had  a  current  moving  with  the  river. 
They  were  often  thirty  miles  in  width.  In  summer 
they  were  covered  with  a  great  lily-like  flower,  the 
leaves  of  which  completely  covered  the  water  in  many 
places.  Great  forests  stretched  over  most  of  these 
flooded  regions.'"" 

The  curves  or  bends  in  this  river,  which  it  has  in 
common  with  other  rivers  of  the  region,  were  features 
of  much  interest  and  speculation  to  Mr.  Flint.  He 
thought  their  regularity  must  be  the  result  of  some 
unknown  law.'"^  The  upper  regions  of  the  river, 
which  however,  he  did  not  visit  since  he  did  not  go, 
so  far  as  can  be  discovered,  more  than  one  hundred 
miles  above  the  "Post,"  were  also  places  of  much  inter- 
est to  him.  He  had  studied  the  reports  of  travelers 
about  the  habits  of  the  river  in  its  upper  courses,  how 
it  issues  from  the  mountains  a  clear  and  rapid  stream, 
and  upon  the  plains  loses  itself  in  the  sands. 

19"  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 
"1  Flint.     Recollections,  256. 

192  _  i^ejj,^  256,  264  ff. 

193  _  i^ern,  264,  265. 


\ 


122  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

His  prophecy  about  these  sandy  plains  through 
which  the  Arkansas  flows  is  interesting  in  view  of  the 
late  developments  in  that  region.  Here  where  the 
river  loses  itself  in  the  burning  and  shifting  sands  he 
thinks  the  buffalo,  elk,  and  bear  will  range  until  they 
"will  in  ages  to  come  be  the  resorts  of  shepherds."  ^°* 
''Providence,"  he  thinks,  ''seems  to  have  provided  that 
men  can  hardly  subsist  among  them."  Here  on  these 
vast  and  sandy  plains  will  be  for  ages  the  "Syrtes  of 
America."  '^^  In  the  midst  of  these  sandy  regions  are 
now  some  of  the  most  valuable  and  productive  lands 
of  the  whole  country,  yielding  not  merely  the  wild 
grape  of  which  Mr.  Flint  had  heard  more  than  we 
now  know,  but  fruits  of  many  kinds,  sugar  beets, 
melons,  and  vegetables,  besides  many  farm  products, 
in  an  amazing  abundance,  while  the  entire  region  had 
long  been  occupied  by  the  cattle  men  with  their  vast 
herds  before  it  was  used  by  the  farmer.  Mr.  Flint 
occasionally  indulged  in  prophecy  and  in  some  in- 
stances he  has  come  surprisingly  near  the  facts  as  they 
have  been  realized  in  history.^^^  In  the  case  of  the 
upper  Arkansas  regions  he  has  gone  farther  astray 
than  is  usual  with  him. 

The  cypress  tree  attracted  his  special  notice  among 
the  trees  of  the  lower  Arkansas  countPy^  It  consti- 
tuted a  vast  proportion  of  the  swamp  forests,  growing 
always  in  water,  covered  with  a  thick  coat  of  green, 
buff,  velvet-like  matter,  while  the  trees  themselves 
were  covered  with  long  moss,  or  "Spanish  beard." 

19*  Flint.     Recollections,  268. 

^*" —  Idem,  255,  256. 

i9«  See  Western  Monthly  Revievi,  vol.  i,  255-263. 


RIVER  JOURNEYS  123 

Concerning  the  effect  of  these  forests  on  the  observer 
he  says : 

No  prospect  on  earth  can  be  more  gloomj'.  The  poetic  Styx 
or  Acheron  had  not  a  greater  union  of  dismal  circumstances. 
Well  may  the  cypress  have  been  esteemed  a  funereal  and  lugu- 
brious tree.^®^ 

The  **Post"  of  Arkansas  [Arkansas  Post],  they 
found  a  rough  frontier  settlement  on  a  narrow  ridge 
of  land  rising  out  of  the  Arkansas.  In  front  of  it  was 
the  river  and  at  the  back  a  swamp  which  was  tribu- 
tary to  the  White  River  thirty  miles  distant.  This 
ridge  was  but  six  hundred  yards  wide  and  about  ten 
feet  above  high  water.  The  entire  population  of  the 
territory,  which  was  only  about  ten  thousand  at  this 
time,  was  settled  at  a  few  points  along  the  rivers. ^''^ 

Mr.  Flint  was  in  Arkansas  only  five  months  and  did 
not  have  the  opportunities  for  travel  that  he  had  in 
Missouri,  but  in  this  short  time  he  visited  several 
points  up  and  down  the  Arkansas  River,  and,  appar- 
ently, the  higher  country  to  the  north."' 

He  found  the  territorial  legislature  enacting  "what 
they  would  call  'the  blue  laws'  of  old  Virginia,"  and 
on  the  succeeding  Sabbath  the  legislators  and  judges 
would  fall  to  their  usual  vocation  of  gambling 
throughout  the  day.'"" 

He  says  of  the  inhabitants : 

The  people  of  this  region  are  certainly  more  rough  and  un- 
tamed than  those  of  the  state  of  Missouri,  or  of  the  more  north- 
ern and  western  regions.  But  yet,  even  the  inhabitants  here  were 
far  from  deserving  the  character  that  has  generally  been  given  to 

197  Flint.    Recollections,  261-263.  '»^—  Idem,  265-267. 

198  _  [jgj„^  2^,  265.  200  _  j^gj„^  269. 


124  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

the  best  of  the  population  of  these  countries.  The  redeeming 
influence  of  American  feelings,  laws,  and  institutions,  was  suflS- 
ciently  infused  into  the  new  government  to  carry  it  into  quiet 
effect  throughout  the  country.-"' 

Mr.  Flint  thought  there  was  no  other  country  which 
could  show  such  bigotry  and  enthusiasm,  run  to  such 
glaring  absurdity.  He  visited  and  studied  carefully 
a  sect  known  as  the  "Pilgrims"  which  had  started  in 
Lower  Canada  and  come  to  the  end  of  its  course,  with 
but  six  persons  left,  near  the  "Post"  in  Arkansas. 
They  had  been  going  southwest  to  find  the  New 
Jerusalem,  and  at  this  point  had  found  the  fever  which 
had  put  an  end  to  their  search  for  the  Heavenly  City 
on  earth.  Their  principle  was  the  forsaking  of  the 
world.  Their  practice  was  never  to  change  their 
clothes,  wash  themselves,  or  follow  an  occupation. 
Their  chant,  when  entering  a  village  was,  "Praise 
God,  repent,  fast,  pray."  Mr.  Flint's  description  of 
the  sect  extends  through  several  pages  of  the  Recol- 
lections^ and  is  worth  the  notice  of  students  of  reli- 
gious fads."°" 

Mr.  Flint's  experience  in  preaching  here  was  one  of 
the  most  tr^'^ing  he  was  ever  called  upon  to  endure  in 
his  capacity  as  a  minister.  The  services  were  held  in 
the  Court  House.  There  were  no  religious  habits, 
and  he  felt  that  his  few  sermons  had  but  little  efifect. 
Some  emotion  was  visible,  but  he  felt  that  his  mission 
was  like  that  of  the  itinerants,  and  that  both  his  and 
their  work  was  like  the  fire  that  passes  over  a  stubble 
field,  lightly,  and  which  in  a  few  days  leaves  no  sign 
of  its  presence.""^ 

-"1  Flint.     Recollections,  269,  270.  203  —  Idem,  274. 

-"-  —  Idem,  275-280. 


RIVER  JOURNEYS  125 

At  this  time  Mr.  Flint  was  preaching  in  French, 
though  his  pronunciation  was  defective,  because  most 
of  his  audience  was  of  that  nation.  He  says  of  these 
hearers: 

The  French  people  generally  came  to  the  place  of  worship, 
arrayed  in  their  ball -dresses,  and  went  directly  from  worship  to 
the  ball.  A  billiard-room  was  near,  and  parts  of  my  audience 
sometimes  came  in  for  a  moment,  and  after  listening  to  a  few  sen- 
tences, returned  to  their  billiards. ^°* 

This  last  experience  he  had  at  other  places  as  well. 

While  he  was  one  hundred  miles  up  the  river,  prob- 
ably at  the  Mulberry  settlement,  in  July,  his  family 
was  taken  sick  with  the  epidemic  fever  of  the  country. 
All  of  them  were  seized  except  Mr.  Flint.  A  negro 
child  died  in  his  family.  His  hired  negro  servant 
was  taken  sick  and  he  could  get  no  one  else.  The  only 
doctor  they  could  trust,  a  member  of  his  family  at  the 
time,  was  sick  also.  Mrs.  Flint  and  Micah  were  so 
ill  as  to  be  thought  hopeless.  There  were  a  great 
many  deaths  all  about  them.  For  sixty  days  Mr. 
Flint  says,  he  was  nurse,  physician,  and  house- 
keeper.^°^ 

It  was  at  this  time  that  they  suffered  from  a  hurri- 
cane. His  journal  and  other  manuscripts  were  lost. 
He  says: 

This  manuscript,  together  with  many  others,  was  blown  away 
in  a  hurricane  which  occurred  on  the  Arkansas,  in  which  every 
part  of  the  house  where  we  resided  was  penetrated  by  the  wind 
and  rain ;  and  in  which  the  suffering  and  danger  of  a  sick  family 
precluded  anxiety'  upon  any  other  score.^°® 

It  was  during  this  summer  too,  that  the  family  ex- 

2"*  Flint.     Recollections,   274. 

2*^^ —  Idem,  271,  272.     Also  letter  from  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 

20«  Flint.     Recollections,  4, 


i2t.  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

perienced   drenching  rain   and   thunder  storms   for 
thirty-six  days  in  succession.'"' 

Added  to  these  larger  afflictions  was  a  lesser  one 
;     that  ought  not  to  be  entirely  overlooked,  and  will  not 
'     be  by  any  one  who  has  had  anything  of  a  similar  ex- 
\    perience.     It    was    the    pest    of    mosquitoes.     The 
^    natives  had  grown  somewhat  accustomed  to  it  though 
they  excused  their  heavy  drinking  by  the  necessity 
;    they  were  under  of  thus  gaining  relief  from  the  miser- 
ies caused  by  this  pest.     They  called  the  reverie  or 
the  insensibility  of  drunkenness  "a  musquitoe  dose." 
The  Flints  could  not  eat  a  meal  at  their  table  all  that 
summer  without  first  kindling  a  fire  under  the  table, 
out  of  the  most  offensive  materials.       Of  his  expe- 
riences at  night  Flint  says: 

I  slept  under  a  ver)'  close  mosquito  curtain.  I  would  soon  be- 
come oppressed  for  want  of  breath  under  the  curtain,  and  when  I 
drew  it  up  and  attempted  to  inhale  a  little  of  the  damp  and  sultry 
atmosphere,  the  mosquitoes  would  instantly  settle  on  my  face  in 
such  numbers  that  I  was  soon  obliged  to  retreat  behind  my  curtain 
again.  Thus  passed  those  dreadful  nights,  amidst  the  groans  of 
my  family,  calls  for  medicine  and  drink,  suffocation  behind  my 
curtain,  or  the  agony  of  mosquito  stings,  as  soon  as  I  was  exposed 
to  the  air.-"* 

Mr.  Flint  tells  us  in  the  letter  to  the  Missionary  So- 
ciet\',  that  under  the  conditions  of  their  summer  in 
Arkansas  the  entire  family  came  to  have  an  aversion 
to  the  low  country  and  thought  only  of  getting  back  to 
the  north.  As  early  as  possible,  and  while  Mrs.  Flint 
had  still  to  be  carried,  they  took  boat  and  started  to 
return  to  St.  Charles,  in  the  early  part  of  October, 
1 819.     Boatmen  often  failed  them  and  Mr.  Flint  was 

-°~  Flint.     A   condensed  Geography  and  History,  vol.  I,  582. 
-^^  Flint.     Recollections,  272,  273. 


RIVER  JOURNEYS  127 

obliged  to  handle  the  boat  with  the  help  of  his  three 
children  who  still  had  the  ague  and  were  sick  every 
other  day."""  Near  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas,  at  St. 
Francis,  they  stopped  with  Mr.  Phillips,  an  acquaint- 
ance, who  pressed  them  to  remain  with  him  until  the 
river  should  be  higher  next  spring.  At  this  season  it 
was  so  low  that  there  were  almost  no  boats  upon  the 
river,  all  steamboats  being  laid  up.  Mr.  Flint  de- 
sired to  stay  but  Mrs.  Flint  and  the  family  were  so 
anxious  to  leave  the  country  that  it  was  decided  to  go 
Qn.=^° 

As  this  was  to  be  the  saddest  journey  of  all  that  this 
long  suffering  family  experienced,  it  will  be  quite  in 
place  to  notice  its  joys.  It  was  a  beautiful  fall. 
Nature  was  at  her  best,  most  wild  and  beautiful.  The 
paroxysms  of  ague,  when  they  were  passed,  left  a  kind 
of  poetic  excitement,  not  unlike  that  produced  by 
opium,  and  making  one  capable  of  a  high  degree  of 
enjoyment.  Mr.  Flint  gives  us  a  picture  of  one  of 
these  nights : 

Then,  when  we  were  made  fast  in  a  cove  on  the  wide  sand-bar ; 
when  the  moon,  with  her  circumference  broadened  and  reddened 
by  the  haze  and  smoke  of  Indian  summer,  rose,  and  diffused,  as 
Chateaubriand  so  beautifully  says,  the  "great  secret  of  melancholy 
over  these  ancient  forests ;"  after  our  evening  prayers,  and  the  fa- 
vorite hymn,  "The  day  is  past  and  gone,"  etc.  I  have  spent 
hours  in  traversing  the  sand-bars  entirely  alone.-^^ 

Progress  up  the  river  was  very  slow.  They  had  not 
gone  far  before  their  two  "hands"  fell  ill  and  left  Mr. 
Flint  and  the  two  boys,  to  drag  the  six  ton  boat  up  the 
river.     Some  days  the  boys  were  sick  with  the  ague 

-0"  Letter  ox  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1832. 
21°  Flint.     Recollections,  283. 
211  —  Idem,  285. 


128  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

and  the  father  toiled  alone  at  the  cordelle.  The 
boat  would  lodge  on  sandbars  and  he  would  have  to  go 
into  the  water  and  push  it  off  though  the  ice  was  at 
times  strong  enough  along  the  shore  to  bear  his 
weight."'"  They  toiled  at  one  place  for  two  or  three 
days  and  were  about  to  lay  by  for  the  winter  when  a 
fortunate  wind  aided  them  with  their  sail  to  go  on. 
They  exhausted  their  provisions,  and  were  at  the  point 
of  hunger  when  they  sighted  a  boat  loaded  with  flour 
and  pork.  They  were  compelled  to  pay  thirty  dollars 
for  a  barrel  of  each,  the  boatmen  discovering  and  tak- 
ing advantage  of  their  plight."'"' 

When  they  had  accomplished  two  hundred  miles  of 
their  journey  up  the  Mississippi,  and  were  "opposite 
the  second  Chickasaw  blufif,"  at  a  point  called  "Rare 
Paths"  and  thirty  miles  from  human  habitation,  on  the 
twenty-sixth  of  November,  there  occurred  the  most 
touching  incident  that  is  possible  in  the  experience  of 
a  Christian  family.  Mr.  Flint  tells  the  story  at  length 
in  the  Recollections,'^*  and  more  briefly  but  with  a  few 
additional  details  in  his  letter  to  the  Missionary  So- 
ciety."'^    Flint  says: 

At  ten  in  the  morning  we  perceived  indications  of  a  severe 
approaching  storm.  The  air  was  oppressively  sultry.  Brassy 
clouds  were  visible  upon  all  quarters  of  the  sky.  Distant  thun- 
der was  heard.  We  were  upon  a  wide  sandbar  far  from  any 
house.  Opposite  to  us  was  a  vast  cypress  swamp.  At  this  pe- 
riod, and  in  this  place,  Mrs.  F.  was  taken  in  travail.  My  children, 
wrapped  in  blankets,  laid  themselves  down  on  the  sand-bar.  I 
secured  the  boat  in  every  possible  w^ay  against  the  danger  of  being 

-1- Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 

213  Flint.     Recollections,  285,  286. 

214  See  pages  286-288. 
212  Jan.  15,  1822. 


RIVER  JOURNEYS  129 

driven  by  the  storm  into  the  river.  At  eleven  the  storm  burst 
upon  us  in  all  its  fury.  Mrs.  F.  had  been  salivated  during  her 
fever,  and  had  not  yet  been  able  to  leave  her  couch.  I  was  alone 
with  her  in  this  dreadful  situation.  Hail,  and  wind,  and 
thunder,  and  rain  in  torrents  poured  upon  us.  I  was  in  terror, 
lest  the  wind  would  drive  my  boat,  notwithstanding  all  her  fas- 
tenings, into  the  river.  No  imagination  can  reach  what  I  en- 
dured. [Nothing  left  but  God,  and  He  appeared  for  us. - 
Letter.]  The  only  alleviating  circumstance  was  her  perfect 
tranquillity.  She  knew  that  the  hour  of  sorrow,  and  expected  that 
of  death,  was  come.  She  was  so  perfectly  calm,  spoke  with  such 
tranquil  assurance  about  the  future,  and  about  the  dear  ones  that 
were  at  this  moment,  "  'biding  the  pelting  of  the  pitiless  storm" 
on  the  sand-bar,  that  I  became  calm  myself.  A  little  after  twelve 
the  wind  burst  in  the  roof  of  my  boat,  and  let  in  the  glare  of  the 
lightning,  and  the  torrents  of  rain  upon  my  poor  wife.  I  could 
really  have  expostulated  with  the  elements  in  the  language  of  the 
poor  old  Lear.  I  had  wrapped  my  wife  in  blankets,  ready  to  be 
carried  to  the  shelter  of  the  forest,  in  case  of  the  driving  of  my 
boat  into  the  river.  About  four  the  fury  of  the  storm  began  to 
subside.  At  five  the  sun  in  his  descending  glory  burst  from  the 
dark  masses  of  the  receding  clouds.  At  eleven  in  the  evening 
Mrs.  F.  was  safely  delivered  of  a  female  infant,  and,  notwith- 
standing all,  did  well.  The  babe,  from  preceding  circumstances, 
was  feeble  and  sickly,  and  I  saw  could  not  survive.  At  midnight 
we  had  raised  a  blazing  fire.  The  children  came  into  the  boat. 
Supper  was  prepared,  and  we  surely  must  have  been  ungrateful 
not  to  have  sung  a  hymn  of  deliverance.  There  can  be  but  one 
trial  more  for  me  that  can  surpass  the  agony  of  that  day,  and  there 
can  never  be  on  this  earth  a  happier  period  than  those  midnight 
hours.  The  babe  stayed  with  us  but  two  days  and  a  half,  and 
expired.  The  children,  poor  things,  laid  it  deeply  to  heart,  and 
raised  a  loud  lament.  We  were,  as  I  have  remarked,  far  away 
from  all  human  aid  and  sympathy,  and  left  alone  with  God.  We 
deposited  the  body  of  our  lost  babe  -  laid  in  a  small  trunk  for  a 
coffin  -  in  a  grave  amidst  the  rushes,  there  to  await  the  resurrec- 
tion of  the  dead.     The  prayer  made  on  the  occasion  by  the  father. 


ijo  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

with  the  children  for  concourse  and  mourners,  if  not  eloquent, 
was,  to  us  at  least,  deeply  affecting. 

The  grave  was  made  on  a  high  bank,  opposite  to 
"the  second  Chickasaw  bluff,"  a  rude  memorial  was 
raised  on  the  spot  and  the  place  became  sacred  in  the 
memories  of  the  devoted  family.  Micah,  some  years 
later,  wrote  "Lines  on  Passing  the  Grave  of  My  Sis- 
ter." It  was  published  in  the  Western  Monthly  Re- 
vieii\'^^  and  will  be  found  in  Appendix  C. 


-^6  See  vol.  i,  651-653. 


VIII.     PREACHING  AND  FARMING  IN 
MISSOURI 

After  the  pathetic  incident  related  at  the  close  of  the 
last  chapter,  the  Flint  family  proceeded  on  their  pain- 
ful and  sorrowful  journey  up  the  river.  They  were 
fortunate  enough  to  secure  two  men  to  aid  them  at  this 
time,  but  after  two  weeks  more  of  travel,  when  they 
had  reached  the  southern  line  of  Missouri,  the  ice  be- 
gan to  hinder  them,  and  the  weather  grew  severe. 
These  difficulties  together  with  the  fact  that  their  boat, 
though  it  drew  but  thirty  inches  of  water,  was  contin- 
ually striking  on  the  sand  bars,  led  them  to  land  at 
New  Madrid,  with  the  intention  of  completing  their 
journey  by  land.^''  But  St.  Charles  was  still  more 
than  two  hundred  miles  distant,  they  were  yet  feeble 
from  their  recent  sicknesses,  and  the  season  and  region 
most  unfavorable  for  such  a  journey  to  be  undertaken 
by  a  family. 

This  village  of  New  Madrid  was  not  so  wretched 
and  abandoned  a  place  as  Mr.  Flint  had  expected  to 
find  it.  There  were  some  rare  people  there,  who, 
when  the  Flints  came  to  know  them  and  to  experience 
their  kindliness  and  hospitality,  were  remembered 
ever  after  as  among  their  choicest  friends.  This  was 
not  only  for  their  work's  sake  toward  the  strangers  but 
for  their  intrinsic  worth  of  character.     This  place 

217  Flint.    Recollections,  219,  220,  288. 


132  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

had  in  past  years  been  the  scene  of  several  serious  at- 
tempts under  the  Spanish  rule,  to  found  a  strong  col- 
ony. There  were  some  prominent  French  and  Amer- 
ican families  located  here  as  a  result  of  such  an  attempt 
by  a  General  Morgan  of  New  Jersey.  An  elderly 
lady,  Mrs.  Gray,  gave  the  family  a  part  of  her  house 
and  here  they  lived  for  the  winter,  from  the  middle  of 
December,  when  they  arrived,  until  the  spring  or  early 
summer.'^^ 

There  were  several  congenial  families  here,  and 
with  their  help  Mr.  Flint  began  religious  services, 
which  he  considered  quite  successful,  and  especially 
so  as  far  as  the  Catholics  were  concerned.  A  Sunday 
School  was  formed  apparently  at  this  time,  and  was 
continued  under  the  care  of  Mrs.  Gray  for  several 
years,  though  Mr.  Flint  speaks  of  her  as  having  seen 
seventy  winters. "^^  It  would  seem  that  there  were 
those  here  who  desired  to  have  Mr.  Flint  settle  as  their 
minister  and  that  a  subscription  was  raised  for  that 
purpose.  However,  the  people  failed  to  pay  what 
they  promised  and  the  minister  moved  on  after  a  few 
months,  to  the  county  town,  Jackson,  some  fift>^  miles 
up  the  river."° 

In  New  Madrid,  Mr.  Flint  experienced,  he  says: 
"a  harrowing  degree  of  interest,  in  the  disappoint- 
ments and  sufiferings  of  these  original  adventurers," 
many  of  whom  had  been  reared  in  all  the  tenderness 
of  opulence  and  plenty,  and  were  from  highly  culti- 
vated and  distinguished  French  families."^ 

21**  Flint.     Recollections,  220,  221. 

-^'■*  —  Idem,  220,  228. 

--0  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 

--1  Flint.     Recollections,  221. 


PREACHING  AND  FARMING  IN  MISSOURI     133 

There  was  also  another  local  interest  at  this  place 
upon  which  he  dwells  at  much  length,  namely,  the 
great  earthquakes  which  had  occurred  seven  years 
before  his  arrival  there,  that  is,  in  1 8 1 2.  This  disaster 
had  almost  a  morbid  interest  for  Mr.  Flint  as  it  had  of 
course,  for  many  of  those  who  witnessed  it.  The 
original  shocks  had  occurred  in  two  series  of  concus- 
sions. At  one  time  the  movement  of  the  earth  was 
vertical.  At  another  time  it  was  horizontal.  There 
were  great  chasms  opened  in  the  earth  running  from 
northeast  to  southwest.  Hundreds  of  these  were 
still  visible  when  Mr.  Flint  was  there.  The  earth 
had  seemed  to  burst  in  other  places.  Such  were  the 
phenomena  near  New  Madrid  on  the  Mississippi 
River.  The  result  was  that  the  waters  were  thrown 
back  into  the  bayous,  many  boats  were  wrecked,  and 
others  were  landed  there  and  abandoned  with  their 
cargoes,  by  their  owners.  Provisions,  in  consequence 
lost  almost  all  value  in  the  New  Madrid  district.  The 
bed  of  the  river  was  changed  at  different  points. 
Lakes  were  made  and  unmade.  For  a  distance  of 
three  hundred  miles  below  New  Madrid  the  face  of 
the  country  was  changed  in  many  striking  ways.  The 
cemetery  on  a  high  point  of  land  overlooking  the  river 
at  New  Madrid  had  been  cast  into  the  river.  The 
town  had  been  largely  depopulated,  and  many  houses, 
with  orchards  and  farms  were  still  abandoned  at  the 
time  even  of  Mr.  Flint's  visit.  No  buildings  had  been 
erected  after  the  earthquakes  except  the  lightest 
kind.'" 

As  the  people  grew  more  experienced  with  the  dan- 

---  Flint.     Recollections,  222-228. 


134  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

gers,  a  unique  plan  of  deliverance  from  the  opening 
chasms  in  the  earth,  was  hit  upon.  The  tallest  trees 
were  felled  to  the  northwest  and  the  southeast,  at 
right  angles  to  the  direction  in  which  the  chasms 
opened.  When  the  earthquake  premonitions  were 
heard,  the  people  hurried  to  their  felled  trees.  Mr. 
Flint  says,  that  by  this  means  all  were  saved  though 
openings  often  occurred  under  the  tree  trunks  on 
which  the  people  were  mounted."^ 

The  government  came  to  the  aid  of  the  stricken 
people  and  allowed  them  to  locate  on  public  lands  in 
other  sections  in  place  of  ruined  or  abandoned  farms 
in  the  devastated  district."'* 

Several  strange  phenomena  are  reported  by  Mr. 
Flint.  There  were  said  to  have  been  continued  and 
vivid  flashes  of  lightning  in  the  western  sky  on  per- 
fectly clear  nights,  in  the  intervals  between  the  earth- 
quake shocks.  There  were  at  such  times,  subterra- 
nean thunders.  The  worst  of  these  was  thought  to 
have  been  on  the  night  in  which  the  fatal  earthquakes 
at  Caracas,  Venezuela,  occurred.  Birds  and  animals 
were  said  to  have  fled  in  terror  to  the  people  for  pro- 
tection. Where  the  earth  burst,  water,  sand,  and  pit- 
coal  were  hurled  in  great  volumes  as  high  as  the  tops 
of  the  trees."^ 

Occasional  shocks  had  been  felt  during  the  seven 
years.  While  they  sat  by  Mrs.  Gray's  winter  fire,  he 
says: 

We  were  not  unfrequently  interrupted  for  a  moment  by  the 

^^^  Flint.     RecollectioTts,  226. 

224 —  Idem,  227.     Letter  of  8.  Giddings,  St.  Louis,  March  21,  1818. 

iic  —  Idem,  223,  224. 


PREACHING  AND  FARMING  IN  MISSOURI     135 

distant  and  hollow  thunder  of  the  approaching  earthquake.  An 
awe,  a  slight  paleness  passed  over  every  countenance.  The  nar- 
rative was  suspended  for  a  moment,  and  resumed. '*•* 

Little  is  told  about  the  year  or  more,  that  the  Flint 
family  spent  in  Jackson,  Missouri.*  He  was  engaged 
in  preaching  and  did  much  traveling.  There  was 
considerable  talk  among  the  German  people  for  whom 
he  preached  a  part  or  all  of  this  time  about  liberal  pay, 
but  after  he  had  left  that  section  and  returned  to  St. 
Charles  he  said  that  he  had  received  nothing  but 
promises  for  his  services  as  minister.  He  and  the 
family  earned  their  living  by  their  labor  and  had 
managed  to  keep  out  of  debt."'  From  references  that 
he  makes  to  German  pupils,  though  he  does  not  say 
where  he  had  them,  and  from  the  fact  that  the  school 
was  always  so  closely  related  to  their  missionary  work 
and  so  sure  a  means  of  helping  to  make  a  living,  it  is 
altogether  likely  that  this  was  a  part  of  their  work 
here.  It  is  also  likely  that  some  farming  was  done. 
The  oldest  son  was  in  his  eighteenth  year  and  the  sec- 
ond son,  Hubbard,  was  twelve  or  thirteen  years  old  at 
this  time. 

Flint  says  about  his  time  spent  in  Jackson  that  it  was 
"more  devoid  of  interest,  or  of  attachment,  or  comfort, 
or  utility,  than  in  any  other  part  of  the  country."  He 
says : 

The  people  are  extremely  rough.  Their  country  is  a  fine 
range  for  all  species  of  sectarians,  furnishing  the  sort  of  people  in 
abundance,  who  are  ignorant,  bigoted,  and  think,  by  devotion  to 

--'■'  Flint.     RecollertioTis,  229. 

*  For  this  period  in  Flint's  travels  see  Hoiick's  History  of  Missouri,  vol. 
iii,  232. 

22'  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Cliarle?,  Jan.  15,  1822. 


1 3b  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

some  favored  preacher  or  sect,  to  atone  for  the  want  of  morals 
and  decency,  and  everything  that  appertains  to  the  spirit  of 
Christianity.--* 

It  is  of  this  section  that  Mr.  Flint  speaks  especially 
when  he  makes  one  of  his  most  interesting  remarks  on 
the  religious  character  of  the  western  people.  He 
says: 

They  are  anxious  to  collect  a  great  many  people  and  preachers, 
and  achieve,  if  the  expression  may  be  allowed,  a  great  deal  of 
religion  at  once,  that  they  may  lie  by,  and  be  exempt  from  its  rules 
and  duties  until  the  regular  recurrence  of  the  period  for  replen- 
ishing the  stock.  Hence  we  witness  the  melancholy  aspect  of 
much  appearance  and  seeming,  frequent  meetings,  spasms,  cries, 
fallings,  faintings,  and,  what  I  imagine  will  be  a  new  aspect  of 
religious  feeling  to  most  of  my  readers,  the  religious  laugh. 
Nothing  is  more  common  at  these  scenes,  than  to  see  the  more 
forward  people  on  these  occasions  indulging  in  what  seemed  to 
me  an  idiot  and  spasmodic  laugh,  and  when  I  asked  what  it  meant, 
I  was  told  it  was  the  holy  laugh !  Preposterous  as  the  term  may 
seem  to  my  readers,  the  phrase  "holy  laugh"  is  so  familiar  to  me, 
as  no  longer  to  excite  surprise.  But  in  these  same  regions,  and 
among  these  same  people,  morals,  genuine  tenderness  of  heart, 
and  capacity  to  be  guided  either  by  reason,  persuasion,  or  the 
uniform  dictates  of  the  gospel,  was  an  affecting  desideratum.--® 

The  scene  of  Mr.  Flint's  George  Mason  is  prob- 
ably laid  here  in  Missouri,  rather  than  in  Mississippi, 
where  he  has  located  it  in  the  story.  He  never  resided 
in  the  latter  state.  The  trying  experiences  of  the 
New  England  minister's  family  under  the  name  of 
the  Masons  must  tell  much  of  what  the  Flints  felt  and 
suffered  keenly  from,  in  the  rude  society  of  Jackson, 
and  other  places  as  well.  Mr.  Flint  would  not  give 
expression  to  it  in  his  letters  or  in  his  Recollections. 
It  was  a  part  of  the  many  things  that  he  withheld  not 

228  Flint.    Recollections,  232.  229  __  Jdem,  238,  239. 


PREACHING  AND  FARMING  IN  MISSOURI    137 

"blazoning"  them  even  to  his  f  riends."^"  In  the  story 
of  George  Mason  we  see  how  the  poverty  of  the  New 
England  family  is  despised  by  the  rich  planters,  how 
their  modesty  and  reticence  is  taken  for  pride,  and 
how  their  unwillingness  to  conform  to  the  rude  reli- 
gious and  social  customs  of  their  neighbors  leads  to 
their  ostracism  and  even  persecution.  The  sons  of 
the  two  wealthiest  planters  fall  in  love  with  the  twelve 
year  old  daughter  of  the  New  England  family  and  in 
their  frontier  way  proceeded  to  woo  her  despite  the 
protests  of  mother  and  daughter,  that  she  was  only  a 
child.  [Mr.  Flint's  daughter  Emeline  was  about  fif- 
teen when  they  lived  in  Jackson.]  In  the  south  that 
age  was  considered  quite  old  enough  for  courtship  and 
marriage.  The  author  remarks  that  he  had  fre- 
quently seen  mothers  but  fourteen  years  of  age. 

While  at  Jackson,  Mr.  Flint  was  much  interested 
in  the  nearby  German  settlement  on  the  Whitewater 
River.  These  people  were  from  Pennsylvania, 
North  Carolina,  and  Germany  direct.  They  were 
settled  in  the  forests  and  very  much  isolated  both  by 
their  habits  and  location.  Flint  thought  they  had 
preserved  their  nationality  better  even  than  their 
countrymen  in  Pennsylvania.  Indeed  he  remarks  l 
about  this  time  that  he  thinks  all  the  Europeans,  and 
the  Anglo-Americans  as  well,  are  far  more  devoted  to 
their  national  and  state  habits  after  they  have  once  lost 
themselves  in  this  new  world.  Much  of  the  infelicity 
of  society  in  the  new  country  he  says  came  from  this 
clannishness,  aggravated  by  the  strange  surroundings  \ 
and  the  latent  homesickness  of  the  people."^^     He  has 

230  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 

231  Flint.     Recollections,  244. 


138  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

no  fear  but  that  this  marked  trait  of  the  early  western 
society  will  pass  and  all  will  be  proud  to  be  a  part  of 
the  nation  that  is  soon  to  be  a  recognized  power  in  the 
family  of  nations.""*' 

The  Germans,  he  considered  the  most  prosperous 
class  of  people  in  the  west.  The  French  seemed  to 
him  the  least  so.  The  very  appearance  of  many  of 
them,  "spare,  thin,  sallow,  and  tanned,  with  their  flesh 
adhering  to  their  bones,  and  apparently  dried  to  the 
consistency  of  parchment"  was  in  striking  and  elo- 
quent contrast  to  the  "large,  stout,  and  ruddy-looking 
men  and  women,"  in  the  German  settlements,  x^s  a 
race  the  French  did  not  rise  above  indigence,  while 
the  Germans  were  generally  independent  and  often 
rich.  Everything  about  their  farms  had  the  appear- 
ance of  permanence  and  strength.  Their  cattle  and 
horses  were  large.     He  said : 

They  spend  Htde,  and  when  they  sell  will  receive  nothing  in 
pay  but  specie.  Every  stroke  counts  towards  improvement. 
Their  wives  have  no  taste  for  parties  and  tea.  Silent,  unwearied 
labor,  and  the  rearing  of  their  children,  are  their  only  pursuits ; 
and  in  a  few  years  they  are  comparatively  rich. 

The  French  were  "a  poor  race  of  hunters,  crowded 
in  villages  with  mud  hovels,  fond  of  conversation  and 
coffee."  Next  to  the  Germans  in  prosperity  were  the 
Anglo-Americans,  then  the  Scotch,  while  the  direct 
emigrants  from  England  were  only  more  successful 
than  the  French."^ 

Mr.  Flint  found  his  German  parishioners  anxious 
for  religious  instruction  and  devoted  to  the  German 
ideals  of  honesty  and  industry,  though  they  had  one 
great  weakness.     He  says : 

232  Flint.    Recollections,  252.  ^ss  —  Idem,  237. 


PREACHING  AND  FARMING  IN  MISSOURI    139 

But  almost  every  farmer  has  his  distillery,  and  the  pernicious 
poison,  whiskey,  dribbles  from  the  corn ;  and  in  their  curious  dia- 
lect, they  told  me,  that  wlu'le  they  wanted  religion,  and  their  chil- 
dren baptized,  and  a  minister  as  exemplary  as  possible,  he  must 
allow  the  honest  Dutch,  as  they  call  themselves,  to  partake  of  the 
native  beverage.  And  they  undertook  to  prove  that  the  swearing 
and  drunkenness  of  a  Dutchman  was  not  so  bad  as  that  of  an 
American.  One  of  them  was  reproved  for  his  intemperance  and 
profaneness,  and  it  was  remarked  that  he  had  been  zealous  and 
i  very  strict  in  his  religious  profession  in  Carolina.  "Never 
mind,"  said  he,  "this  is  a  bad  countrj'  for  religion.  I  know  that  I 
have  lost  him,"  he  continued,  "but  never  mind,  by  and  by  the 
good  breacher,"  as  he  phrased  it,  "will  come  along,  and  1  shall 
pick  him  all  up  again.-"* 

These  people  had  brought  a  minister  named  Wei- 
berg  with  them  to  the  country.  He  was  an  educated 
man  but  a  notorious  drunkard.     Says  Mr.  Flint: 

The  earnest  manner  in  which  he  performed  divine  service  in 
their  own  ritual  [the  Lutheran]  and  in  their  own  language,  car- 
ried away  all  their  affections.  .  .  After  service  he  would  get 
drunk,  and  as  often  happens  among  them,  was  quarrelsome. 
They  claimed  indulgence  to  get  drunk  themselves,  but  were  not 
quite  so  clear  in  allowing  their  minister  the  same  privilege. 

When  the  time  came  to  pay  their  subscriptions  they 
refused  on  the  ground  of  his  failing.  Three  succes- 
sive years  he  sued  for  and  recovered  his  salary.     And 

To  reinstate  himself  in  their  good  will,  it  was  only  necessary  for 
him  to  take  them  when  a  sufficient  quantity  of  whiskey  had  opened 
their  phlegmatic  natures  to  sensibility,  and  then  give  them  a  vehe- 
ment discourse,  as  they  phrased  it.  in  the  pure  old  Dutch,  and  give 
them  a  German  hymn  of  his  own  manufacture,  for  he  was  a  poet, 
too,  and  the  subscription  paper  was  once  more  brought  forward. 
They  who  had  lost  their  suit  and  had  been  most  fnveterate  in 
their  dislike,  were  thawed  out,  and  crowded  about  the  paper 
either  to  sign  their  name  or  make  their  mark.-^^ 


23*  Flint.    Recollections,  233.  235 —  Idem,  334,  335. 


140  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

But  the  Reverend  Herr  Weiberg  had  finally  been 
banished  to  a  neighboring  German  colony  and  the 
Yankee  ''Breacher"  was  in  his  place. 

He  occasionally  returned  to  Germany  as  it  was  called,  to  taste 
their  whiskey  and  cider.  .  .  He  came  to  the  house  of  Madam 
Ballinger,  where  I  usually  stayed  when  among  them.  "Well," 
said  he,  "I  judge  you  will  now  get  good  fast,  now  that  you  have  a 
Yankee  breacher.  Does  he  know  one  word  of  Dutch?"  "Very 
little,  I  suppose,"  she  replied  ;  but  in  order  to  vindicate  her  preach- 
er, she  added,  "but  he  knows  French,"  etc.,  and  she  went  on 
giving  my  knowledge  of  various  languages,  according  to  her  own 
fancy:  "And,  mein  Gott,  what  I  tinks  much  good,  he  does  not 
drink  one  trop  of  whiskey!"  ^^^ 

Mr.  Flint  says  further  about  his  German  congre- 
gation, 

I  had  the  good  fortune  to  be  very  acceptable  to  this  people, 
although  I  could  not  smoke,  drink  whiskey,  nor  talk  German. 
They  made  various  efforts  to  fix  my  family  among  them.  And, 
as  the  highest  expression  of  good  will,  they  told  me  that  they 
would  do  more  than  they  had  done  for  Weiberg.-^^ 

Whether  it  was  because   the  "Yankee  breacher" 


236  The  funeral  customs  of  these  German  people  may  be  of  interest. 
Flint  says  —  "I  attended  a  funeral,  where  there  were  a  great  number  of  them 
present.  After  I  had  performed  such  services  as  I  was  used  to  perform  on 
such  occasions,  a  most  venerable  looking  old  man,  of  the  name  of  Nycswinger, 
with  a  silver  beard  that  flowed  down  his  chin,  came  forward  and  asked  me 
if  I  were  willing  that  he  should  perform  some  of  their  peculiar  rites.  I  of 
course  wished  to  hear  them.  He  opened  a  very  ancient  version  of  Luther's 
hymns,  and  they  began  to  sing  in  German,  so  loud  that  the  woods  echoed 
the  strain;  and  3et  there  was  something  affecting  in  the  singing  of  these 
ancient  people,  carrying  one  of  their  brethren  to  his  long  home,  in  the  use 
of  the  language  and  rites  which  they  had  brought  with  them  over  the  sea 
from  the  'fader  land,'  a  word  which  often  occurred  in  their  hymn.  It  was  a 
long,  loud,  and  mournful  air,  which  they  sung  as  they  bore  the  body  along. 
The  words  'mein  Gott,'  'mein  broder,'  and  'fader  land,'  died  away  in  the 
distant  woods.  Remembrances  and  associations  rushed  upon  me,  and  I  shall 
long  remember  that  funeral  hymn."  ~  Recollections,  235,  236. 

237  Flint.     Recollections,  236. 


PREACHING  AND  FARMING  IN  MISSOURI     141 

could  not  meet  them  in  more  of  their  social  customs, 
whether  it  was  because  he  would  not  pursue  Weiberg's 
method  of  collecting  his  salary  and  renewing  the  sub- 
scriptions, is  not  known.  It  is  clear,  however,  that  the 
promises  and  efforts  amounted  to  nothing;  and  early 
in  September,  1821,  after  spending  almost  two  years 
in  southern  Missouri,  the  family  started  overland  for 
St.  Charles."* 

On  this  one  hundred  and  fifty  mile  journey  they 
probably  had  some  heavy  conveyance  which  would 
carry  their  household  effects  and  the  mother  and  in- 
fant. For,  during  this  summer,  a  fifth  child  (the 
fourth  to  live)  was  born  to  them,  on  June  8,  1821,  at 
Jackson.  He  was  named  James  Timothy."^  Their 
"Joseph"  Mr.  Flint  calls  him.  He  was  to  be  their 
comfort  indeed  in  after  years. 

This  journey  to  St.  Charles  would  lead  them  by  a 
way  that  was  not  as  strange  as  all  their  former  paths 
in  a  new  country.  There  would  be  friends  and  ac- 
quaintances at  Ste.  Genevieve.  There  were  the 
Hempsteads  and  many  others  at  St.  Louis.  The  jour- 
ney was  leisurely  for  they  did  not  reach  St.  Charles 
until  about  the  middle  of  October."*** 

Their  former  farm  home  below  St.  Charles  had 
been  sold  when  they  left  in  the  spring  of  18 19.  Still 
they  felt  that  there  they  were  at  home.  Mr.  Flint 
says  in  the  letter  to  the  Missionary  Society,  January 
15,  1822,  that  their  welcome  had  been  very  cordial 
from  their  former  friends  in  St.  Charles,  and  that  he 

238  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 

239  Family  Records.  Manuscripts  in  Boston  Public  Library  and  Library 
of  Harvard  University. 

240  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 


U2  TIMOTHY  FLINT 

had  obtained  a  perpetual  lease  on  a  farm  four  miles 
from  St.  Charles,  having  ''determined  to  farm  for 
subsistence,  and  to  preach  altogether  gratis."  This 
farm  must  have  been  below  the  village  and  near  where 
their  former  home  had  been.  In  the  Recollec- 
tions,''' he  makes  acknowledgment  of  special  indebt- 
edness to  two  families  who  lived  below  St.  Charles  at 
the  "Point." 

The  letter  continues : 

We  began  w  ith  some  degree  of  cheerfulness  to  build  our  cabin, 
where  we  expected  to  end  our  days.  The  second  day  of  our 
labor,  we  were  all  struck  in  one  day  with  the  dreadful  fever  of  the 
country.  We  were  penniless  and  homeless.  For  more  than  30 
days,  all  consciousness  and  remembrance  was  lost  to  mc.  The 
neighbors  took  Mrs.  F.  and  me  to  one  house,  our  daughter  was 
carried  to  another.  Mrs.  F.  had  an  infant  and  it  was  taken  from 
the  breast,  and  carried  to  another  place.  My  two  boys  had  but  a 
slight  attack,  and  went  to  another  place.  The  first  of  January' 
we  were  all  re-assembled  in  the  cabin,  where  v/e  now  live,  but  all 
afflicted  with  the  ague,  which  has  now  followed  me  sevent}'  days. 

The  Recollections  adds  some  details  to  the  story  of 
this  sad  homecoming.  In  the  height  of  his  fever,  cir- 
cumstances made  it  necessary  for  Mr.  Flint  to  be  re- 
moved from  the  house  where  he  w^as  taken  sick. 
While  he  was  unable  to  raise  himself  in  bed,  he  was 
moved  in  a  carriage  to  a  house  six  miles  distant.  He 
writes: 

Sick  as  we  were  and  probable  as  the  prospect  was,  that  some  of 
us  would  add  the  trouble  of  funeral  rites  and  duties  to  the  labor 
and  cares  of  nursing  us,  they  never  remitted  their  kindness  for  a 
moment. 

He  is  not  permitted  to  name  these  friends,  but  as 
he  looks  back  upon  those  dreary  days,  writing  a  few 

2*1  Page  190. 


> 

n 


H 


n 


PREACHING  AND  FARMING  IN  MISSOURI     145 

years  later,  probably  in  Salem,  or  perhaps  at  the  pa- 
rental home  in  North  Reading,  he  says: 

How  often,  when  flunking  of  these  families,  to  whom  we  owe 
so  much,  have  I  remembered  Gray's  beautiful  verses  -  "Full 
many  a  gem,"  etc.^*" 

By  the  first  of  the  year,  1822,  the  cabin  had  been 
completed,  and  probably  much  earlier  for  the  two 
boys,  as  we  have  seen,  w^ere  not  seriously  ill.  There 
was  another  trouble,  however,  for  the  missionary  let- 
ter says: 

We  are  now  for  the  first  time  in  debt.  [He  probably  means 
debt  as  a  result  of  living  expenses  and  sickness.]  I  have  no  appar- 
ent means  of  payment  -  for  I  am  utterly  incapable  of  assisting  my 
family,  and  Mrs.  Flint  has  the  ague  sometimes  many  days  in  suc- 
cession. Under  these  circumstances,  we  are  discouraged  with  the 
country.  Our  industry,  we  think,  would  avail  us  more  in  a 
healthier  climate.  The  people  of  St.  Charles  have  shown  great 
kindness,  but  our  situation  is  still  sufficiently  wretched.  We 
seem  to  have  no  prospect  here,  but  to  wear  out  with  continual 
fever  and  ague.  Our  friends  at  the  eastward  propose  to  assist  us 
in  some  small  degree,  to  return  to  Mass.  Perhaps  your  society, 
which  assisted  us  to  come  here,  will  compassionate  our  case,  and 
join  our  friends  in  aiding  us  to  return.  Any  of  the  Missionaries 
here  will  inform  you  that  instead  of  blazoning  our  misfortunes, 
we  have  kept  the  greater  part  of  them  back.  Perhaps  your 
society  will  think  it  as  meritorious,  to  assist  a  distressed,  and  worn 
out  family  to  revisit  their  friends  -  as  to  fit  the  fresh  Miss,  out.-*^ 

Mr.  Flint  was  an  honorable  and  independent  man, 
and  his  putting  aside  his  pride  to  write  the  above  letter 
would  not  be  the  least  of  his  sufferings.  He  would 
not  have  done  it  at  all  but  for  the  helpless  family, 
which  he  was  not  then  able  to  do  anything  for,  and 
for  which  he  seemed  unlikely  to  be  able  to  provide 

242  Page  191. 

2^"^  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1823. 


140  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

in  that  section.  Certainly  none  will  dare  to  charge 
him  with  anything  of  the  pauper  spirit  in  this  instance 
until  they  have  entered  into  some  sympathy  with  the 
desperate  situation  in  which  his  family  was  at  this 
time  placed. 

Hear  him  a  little  farther,  though  one  shrinks  from 
making  public  even  at  this  day  what  cost  a  brother, 
as  this  cost  Mr.  Flint.     He  writes: 

You  can  easily  conceive  the  strong  repugnance,  which  I  feel  at 
making  a  proposal  so  humiliating  to  our  natural  feelings.  But 
I  may  say  with  the  catholic  church,  "e  profundis  exclamavi." 

I  have  looked  upon  my  family,  and  all  pride  has  sunk  within 
me.  The  view  of  their  condition  has  wrung  from  me  this  pro- 
posal. I  have  traveled  farther  -  and  have  suffered  more,  and 
have  preached  as  much  -  as  any  Miss,  in  the  country.  Should 
your  society  see  fit  to  remit  me  something  in  aid  of  my  returning 
next  fall,  I  may,  perhaps,  see  you,  and  thank  you  and  them  in  per- 
son. At  any  rate  you  will  not  censure  this  my  proposal  until  you 
have  placed  yourselves  in  my  situation  in  fancy,  in  an  open  cabin, 
one  or  the  other  still  groaning  with  the  ague  -  and  no  resource, 
but  the  casual  kindness  of  a  few  friends,  whom  the  frequent  view 
of  similar  cases  has  rendered  callous  to  them. 

I  am  persuaded,  my  dear  Sir  [Reverend  Abel  Flint,  secretary 
of  the  Missionary  Society  of  Connecticut]  that  you  will  give  our 
case  a  kind  and  considerate  hearing,  and  that  your  delicacy  will 
not  expose  our  case,  except  there  be  some  prospect  of  some  assist- 
ance. Should  I  survive  my  present  complaint,  of  which  I  some- 
times doubt,  it  is  doubtful,  if  I  shall  ever  be  able  to  preach  again, 
though  my  friends  seem  anxious,  that  I  should  resume  my  labors 
here.  But  whether  I  recover,  or  not,  whether  your  society  aid 
me,  or  not,  I  am  resigned,  I  am,  and  shall  be  personally  your 
affectionate  friend,  and  hum.  serv.  T.  Flint. 

One  feels  that  the  appeal  to  the  Missionary  Society 
of  Connecticut  was  just  and  proper.  It  would  not 
seem  that  anyone  who  contributed  to  the  funds  of  the 


PREACHING  AND  FARMING  IN  MISSOURI     147 

society  at  that  time  would  have  objected  to  such  use  of 
the  money  when  they  knew  even  a  small  part  of  the 
story.  But  a  careful  and  repeated  study  of  the  So- 
ciety's list  of  disbursements  for  the  year  1822'"  and 
of  the  six  thousand  three  hundred,  four  dollars  and 
sixty-six  and  one-half  cents  disbursed  by  order  of  the 
trustees,  not  one  cent  went  to  the  Flint  family  though 
there  were  three  other  missionaries  in  the  new  state 
of  Missouri  who  received  a  total  of  four  hundred, 
eighty-five  dollars.  It  ought  to  be  said,  however, 
that  aid  may  very  possibly  have  been  sent  to  Mr.  Flint 
from  constituents  of  the  society  and  through  its  influ- 
ence. Such  items,  probably,  would  not  be  officially 
reported. 


2ii  Tiventy-Fourtli    Annual    Narrative    of    Missions    (Hartford,    1823) 
has  a  statement  of  the  funds  for  the  year  1822. 


IX.  FLORIDA  AND  NEW  ORLEANS 

Whether  or  not  Mr.  Flint  served  the  St.  Charles 
church  as  minister  after  his  recovery  in  the  w^inter  of 
1822,  and  until  his  departure  in  October  of  that  year, 
we  are  not  informed.  It  is  altogether  likely  that  he 
preached  for  them  at  least  a  part  of  the  time.  He 
and  the  boys  devoted  themselves  to  their  farm  during 
the  spring  and  summer.'" 

It  is  quite  probable  that  during  this  year  Mr. 
Flint  was  doing  something  with  his  pen,  hoping  thus 
to  help  gain  a  living  and  do  his  part  of  the  world's 
work.  His  George  Mason  very  likely  chronicles 
something  of  this  year's  experiences,  as  for  instance 
when  Mr.  Mason  is  represented  as  working  on  a  book 
which  he  had  expected  to  find  time  and  inspiration 
to  finish,  here  in  his  Arcadia.  But  with  the  work 
of  clearing  a  little  garden  spot  in  the  forest. 

The  father's  hands  were  one  blister.  .  .  The  severe  toil, 
too,  caused  Mr.  Mason  rheumatic  pains  and  sleepless  nights.  He 
found,  moreover,  when  stormj'  weather  confined  him  to  the 
house,  that  a  body  full  of  the  pains  of  exhausting  labor,  would  not 
allow  scope  to  his  thoughts,  when  he  sat  down  to  his  great  work 
with  his  pen.  Unremitting  toil,  in  such  a  frame,  blunts  the  sen- 
sibilities, suspends  the  exercise  of  the  imagination  and  fancy,  and 
after  a  fruitless  effort  to  stir  up  his  thoughts,  he  was  compelled  to 
admit,  that  severe  labor  and  writing  are  incompatible.^^V 

~*^  Flint.     Recollections,  291. 

-^"  Flint,  Timoth}-.     George  Mason,  the  Young  Backivoodsman,  32. 


I50  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

It  would  not  be  surprising  to  learn  that  George 
Mason  was  written  during  this  year  of  the  second  resi- 
dence in  St.  Charles.  It  would  have  been  more  pos- 
sible than  in  the  busy  Cincinnati  years  just  before  it 
was  published. 

Mr.  Flint  tells  us  that  they  took  leave  of  their  friends 
in  St.  Charles  at  this  time -the  last  they  were  to  see  of 
this  place  of  their  wanderings -after  a  sacramental 
meeting,  being  he  says,  "accompanied  by  the  prayers 
and  tears  of  many  friends,  not  without  corresponding 
tears  of  our  own.""** 

When  they  were  preparing  to  depart  from  St. 
Charles,  they  had  all,  apparently,  recovered  their 
health.  Their  prospects  for  a  living,  and  for  useful- 
ness were  not,  however,  sufficiently  bright  to  encour- 
age them  to  stay  in  this  section  of  the  west.  It  was 
with  the  help  of  eastern  friends  that  they  had  prepared 
to  return  to  New  England,  via  the  Mississippi  and  the 
Atlantic. 

Mr.  Flint  makes  a  delicate  and  warm  expression  of 
his  obligations  to  the  two  friends,  who,  at  this  period 
came  to  his  rescue.  He  "would  tell  all"  if  it  were  not 
for  the  feelings  of  his  family.  His  friend.  Dr.  James 
Flint,  who  settled  in  1821  as  pastor  of  the  East  Church, 
Salem,  was  one  of  the  friends,  and  the  other  we  have 
no  doubt,  was  Joseph  Peabody,  the  Salem  merchant.'" 

The  journey  down  the  Mississippi  was  begun  the 
fourth  of  October,  1822,  in  company  with  Mr.  Wil- 
liam Postell,  of  St.  Charles,  who  had  joined  Mr.  Flint 

-*^  Flint.     Recollections,  217. 

''^  —  Idem,  291,  292.  See  also  the  Dedications  of  the  Recollections  and 
the  Geograplty  and  History. 


FLORIDA  AND  NEW  ORLEANS  151 

in  building  a  flatboat  and  fitting  it  up  for  the  use  of 
a  family.  Two  days  after  they  had  taken  leave  of  the 
St.  Charles  friends,  they  left  the  quiet  retreat  on  the 
prairie  below  the  town.  But  before  they  had  gotten 
out  of  the  Missouri  they  lodged  on  a  sand  bar  which 
held  them  for  four  days  and  until  they  had  unloaded 
their  boat.  They  were  not  ready  to  go  on  until  the  end 
of  the  week.  They  tied  up  at  St.  Louis  for  the  Sab- 
bath. Mr.  Flint  says  of  this  occasion  at  St.  Louis, 
"I  preached  to  a  very  serious  audience,  a  farewell  dis- 
course. Many  circumstances  concurred  to  give  solem- 
nity to  this  parting."  Such  partings  are  always  times 
for  reviewing  the  past.  It  would  not  be  difficult  to 
enter  into  some  of  the  concurring  circumstances  which 
made  this  occasion  so  solemn  for  people  and  minis- 
ter.=='° 

After  the  first  mishap  on  the  sandbar  in  the  Mis- 
souri, this  journey  was  prosperous  all  the  long  way  to 
N  ew  Orleans.  As  far  as  the  Arkansas  there  was  noth- 
ing of  the  charm  of  novelty  which  was  always  so  keen 
with  Mr.  Flint.  There  was  much  of  sadness  associ- 
ated with  every  rapid  place  in  the  river  and  especially 
with  one  particular  point  "opposite  the  second  Chick- 
asaw blufif." 

After  they  have  passed  below  the  Arkansas,  Mr. 
Flint  begins  in  his  Recollections  a  history  of  the  settle- 
ments which  they  pass,  the  new  aspects  of  the  vegetable 
world  as  it  growls  more  tropical,  the  different  appear- 
ance of  the  forests,  and  especially  the  difference  in  the 
character  of  the  settlements  with  their  increasing  num- 
ber of  negro  huts  and  villages  about  the  great  planta- 

-^°  Flint.    Recollections,  217,  219. 


152  TIM(rrHV    FLINT 

rion  buildings.     .Much  of  this  material  must  be  val- 
uable for  the  historian  of  this  period  and  section. 

At  Warrenton,  Mississippi,  just  below  where  Vicks- 
burg  now  stands,  they  came  to  the  first  village  of  any 
size  below  New  Madrid,  Missouri.  Here  they 
stopped  for  a  day  or  two  and  made  inquiries  about  the 
religious  life  and  interests  of  the  place.  Though 
there  were  a  hundred  good  residences  and  many  brick 
store  buildings  in  the  place,  he  could  find  but  one  per- 
son who  was  known  as  a  professor  of  religion.  He 
says: 

I  was  directed  to  a  young  lady,  whose  husband  had  something 
of  the  appearance  of  a  dandy,  and  who  answered  my  inquiries 
about  the  profession  of  his  wife,  with  a  shrug,  and  a  half-sup- 
pressed smile,  informing  me  that  she  was  a  Methodist,  but  would 
be  glad  to  converse  with  any  person  who  wore  the  garb  and 
appearance  of  a  minister.  He  gave  me  clearly  to  understand  that 
it  was  no  affair  of  his  and  that  I  must  converse  with  her  alone. 
She  spoke  discouragingly  about  the  willingness  of  the  people  to 
assemble  for  public  worship.  I  retired,  considering  it  a  hopeless 
attempt,  and  intending  to  pass  on  without  any  public  exercise. 
But  in  the  course  of  the  evening  a  number  of  the  citizens  came  on 
board,  offering  their  houses  and  wishing  to  have  public  worship. 
There  was  a  full  house  and  apparently  an  attentive  audience. 

Thev  left  this  place  the  next  morning  after  hearing 
many  regrets  expressed  by  the  people  that  in  so  con- 
siderable and  prosperous  a  place  there  should  be  so 
little  public  spirit  and  so  little  religious  feeling,  as  to 
have  no  place  of  public  worship. '^^ 

Natchez  they  found  a  romantically  situated  place 
which  the  inhabitants  called  a  city.  It  was  the  prin- 
cipal cotton-shipping  point  of  the  region.  At  some 
seasons  a  thousand  boats  could  be  seen  at  the  landing. 

-■"■'i  Flint.     RecolUct'tons,   294,  295. 


FLORIDA  AND  NEW  ORLEANS  153 

The  lower  part  of  the  town,  "under  the  hill,"  was  a 
repulsive  place,  the  center  of  all  that  was  vile  from 
the  upper  and  lower  country,  ''the  refuse  of  the 
world."  Of  the  houses  in  this  section  of  Natchez, 
Mr.  Flint  says:  "The  fiddle  screaks  jargon  from 
these  fauctbus  orciy  The  other  part  of  the  town  on  a 
bluf¥  three  hundred  feet  high,  showed  a  rich  country 
round  about,  and  it  contained  many  handsome  public 
buildings,  on  wide  streets,  with  the  appearance  of 
comfort  and  opulence.  There  was  a  Baptist,  a  Meth- 
odist and  a  Presbyterian  church,'^'  the  latter  with  a 
large  building  and  society.  Mr.  Flint  had  no  books  at 
hand  as  he  wrote  and  estimated  the  population  of 
Natchez  at  seven  or  eight  thousand.  He  notes  also 
that  though  the  town  was  clean  and  the  air  seemingly 
pure  they  had  repeated  and  severe  visits  of  the  yellow 
fever.'"*^ 

One  hundred  and  fifty  miles  above  New  Orleans 
they  came  to  the  levee  on  the  west  side  of  the  river. 
Another  began  a  little  lower  on  the  east  side  and  each 
continued  to  New  Orleans.  They  were  struck  by  the 
high  state  of  cultivation  which  obtained  on  the  nar- 
row strip  of  coast  land  on  each  side  of  the  river  and 
lying  under  the  levee.  This  coast  land  was  usually 
about  two  miles  wide,  bounded  at  the  back  by  the 
swamps  and  forests,  conforming  to  the  shape  of  the 

'^''-  Flint.  Recollect!orr.r,  295.  For  the  origin  of  this  and  other  Presbyte- 
rian churches  in  the  vicinitj-,  see  J.  G.  Jones's  A  Concise  History  of  the  In- 
troduction of  Protestantism  into  Mississippi  and  the  Southivfst,  225-238.  Mr. 
Jones  says  the  first  Protestant  church  in  this  section,  and  so  far  as  the  writer 
can  learn  it  was  the  first  church  with  a  settled  pastor  west  of  the  Alleghany 
Mountains,  was  a  Congregational  church  at  Kingston,  Miss.  It  was  formed 
by  Reverend  Samuel  Swayze,  and  a  colony  from  New  Jersey  in  1872  or  1873. 

-^3  Flint.     Recollections,  295,  296. 


154  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

river,  and  very  rich.  Sounds  heard  from  the  houses 
below  them  seemed  to  come  from  beneath  the  river. 
The  houses  and  grounds  were  very  beautiful  and  Mr. 
Flint  thought  that  no  other  section  of  the  Union,  not 
even  the  banks  of  the  Delaware  could  compare  for 
fertility'  and  productiveness  with  this  section.  Among 
the  noblest  of  the  plantations  that  they  saw  was  that 
of  General  Hampton,  "one  of  the  questionable  heroes 
of  the  late  war,"  Mr.  Flint  thinks.''* 

In  all  this  marvelously  rich  and  beautiful  section  of 
country,  with  its  dense  population,  Mr.  Flint  was 
pained  to  find  no  Protestant  church,  though  the  eye 
was  cheered  by  the  sight  of  a  Catholic  spire  every  six 
or  seven  miles.  He  thought  it  hardly  necessary  to  go 
to  Hindustan  to  find  whole  regions  destitute  of  even 
the  forms  of  Christian  worship.  At  Baton  Rouge 
they  admired  the  United  States  barracks  which  Mr. 
Flint  thought  as  commodious  as  any  in  the  whole 
country.  The  two  or  three  companies  of  troops  were 
under  high  discipline.  There  was  a  beautiful  white 
monument  on  the  grounds,  erected  in  honor  of  some 
officers  of  the  garrison  who  had  died  there,  but  the 
inscription  on  it  seemed  to  Mr.  Flint  a  reproach  in  a 
professedly  Christian  country.  As  he  remembered 
the  verse  it  w^as: 

Like  bubbles  on  a  sea  of  matter  borne, 
We  rise,  we  burst,  and  to  that  sea  return."^^ 

We  are  not  told  just  when  the  Flint  party  reached 
New  Orleans,  but  it  was  probably  some  time  in  No- 
vember and  in  the  healthiest  season.  Their  health 
must  have  been  so  much  improved  and  the  country  so 

-^*  Flint.     Recollections,  297,  3(X).         -^^  —  Idem,  299,  300. 


FLORIDA  AND  NEW  ORLEANS  155 

attractive  in  various  ways  that  they  were  in  no  hurry 
to  proceed  to  New  England  and  so  complete  the  long 
journey  they  had  begun.  In  January  of  that  winter, 
Mr.  Flint  tells  us  that  he  ascended  the  river  on  a 
steamboat  as  far  as  Baton  Rouge.  He  does  not  tell 
us  the  object  of  this  trip  but  devotes  a  page  or  two  of 
the  Recollections  to  what  he  saw  at  that  time.^^^  They 
spent  about  four  months  in  New  Orleans  during  the 
first  winter's  residence  there  and  at  New  Year's  time 
were  enjoying  peas  in  bloom,  daffodils,  and  roses. ^^^ 
Mr.  Flint  spent  part  of  the  time  gathering  material 
for  his  Geography  and  History  in  the  French  manu- 
scripts in  the  archives  of  state."^^ 

The  Flints  had  friends  in  the  south  to  welcome 
them.  These,  with  new  and  influential  ones,  desired 
to  locate  them  permanently  in  this  section  of  the  coun- 
try. In  this  way  they  became  interested  in  Coving- 
ton, thirty-five  miles  north  of  New  Orleans,  and  across 
Lake  Pontchartrain.  Mr.  Flint  repeatedly  calls  this 
section  West  Florida  although  it  was  then,  and  had 
been  since  18 10,  claimed  by  the  United  States  as  a 
part  of  Louisiana.  In  1812,  it  was  made  a  part  of  the 
state  of  Louisiana,  and  in  1819  and  1821,  all  possible 
claim  of  Spain  upon  it  had  been  surrendered  to  the 
United  States.''' 

On  a  stormy  March  evening  they  embarked  on  a 
steamer  that  was  to  carry  them  across  this  broad  and 
shallow  lake  for  the  scene  of  their  new  labors.  So 
low  were  its  shores  and  so  wide  its  shallow  waters  that 

"^^  In  the  year  1823;  pages  299,  300. 

257  ff^estern  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  iii,  633. 

-^^ —  Idem,  vol.  i,  opposite  128.     Also  Geography  and  History,  vol.  i,  13. 

259  Channing,  E.     The  Jeffersonian  System,  map,  opp.   14.2. 


156  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

in  its  center  it  was  difficult  or  even  impossible  to  see 
land,  though  it  was  only  thirty  miles  wide.  When 
the  water  was  rough  the  surf  broke  far  in  the  forests 
so  low  was  the  shore.  When  it  was  calm  there  was  a 
covering  over  the  water  like  paint  of  various  hues 
shifting  and  changing,  and  showing  the  most  singular 
sport  of  this  kind  that  could  be  imagined.  There 
were  great  herds  of  cattle  feeding  in  the  swamps  in 
winter  and  ranging  in  the  grasses  of  the  pine  w^oods 
during  the  summer.  These  pines  gave  them  a  home- 
like feeling  for  they  had  seen  none  in  the  whole  two 
thousand  miles  of  their  travels  on  the  "Nile  of  the 
West."  Mr.  Flint  was  interested  in  the  relics  of  the 
long  history  of  the  Floridas,  and  in  the  contrasts  of 
soil,  climate,  and  people  compared  with  other  sections 
in  which  he  had  lived.  The  shipping  on  the  bayous 
and  lakes  he  found  very  important,  but  the  sailors  were 
the  most  abandoned  of  their  class,  being  the  refuse 
from  the  sea  and  larger  rivers.  The  native  people  he 
thought  were  more  shiftless  and  degraded  than  in  oth- 
er places,  being  generally  denominated  Bogues  and 
calling  themselves  "rosin  heels." ^^^ 

Mr.  Flint  had  charge  of  two  churches  here,  the  one 
in  Madisonville  on  the  north  shore  of  the  lake,  a 
summer  resort  for  New^  Orleans  people,  and  the  other 
at  Covington.  This  latter  place  was  six  miles  inland, 
the  county  town  in  St.  Tammany  County,  and  the  head 
of  river  navigation  toward  the  Mississippi  Territory. 
There  w^as  a  school  here  which  Mr.  Flint  conducted 
in  addition  to  his  duties  as  a  minister.  Only  two 
things  which  seemed  worthy  of  note  occurred  in  his 

*^o  Flint.     Recollections,  315-319. 


FLORIDA  AND  NEW  ORLEANS  157 

work  here.  Contrary  to  the  rule  in  this  section,  the 
people  were  united,  and  punctual  in  their  attendance 
on  religious  worship.""'  Another  occurrence  in  the 
time  of  their  residence  here  was  a  severe  storm,  long 
remembered,  in  the  fall  of  1823.  Mr.  Flint  compares 
it  with  a  great  storm  in  New  England,  in  the  fall  of 
1815,  just  as  he  was  leaving  the  Atlantic  section,  and 
thinks  the  latter  was  the  more  severe.^"" 

Health  seems  to  have  been  good  in  West  Florida, 
but  they  returned  to  New  Orleans  after  seven  or  eight 
months  in  the  fall  of  1823,  thinking  possibly  to  locate 
permanently  in  that  city.  This  question  was  a  matter 
of  "painful  solicitude."  Many  friends  assured  them 
that  they  were  now  well  enough  acclimated  to  make  it 
safe  for  them  to  stay  in  the  city  through  the  summer. 
Fear  of  the  consequence  of  such  an  attempt,  and  the 
probability  that  they  would  be  compelled  to  leave  ev- 
ery summer,  decided  them,  when  the  opportunity 
came,  to  go  to  Alexandria  in  the  same  state.'"^  Noth- 
ing is  said  of  returning  to  the  north.  They  seemed 
I  to  be  here  to  stay.  The  great  business  prosperity  of 
I  the  country  had  made  it  possible  for  the  family  to 
I  become  independent  and  comfortable  in  a  short  time. 
The  country  had  many  attractions,  while  the  need  for 
the  teacher  and  preacher  was  great. 

Before  going  to  the  Red  River  country,  with  them, 
it  would  be  well  to  look  at  New  Orleans  as  it  was  in 
Mr.  Flint's  time,  not  so  much  for  the  sake  of  acquaint- 
ance with  the  old  city,  but  because  it  will  be  an  aid 

-•^1  Flint.     Recollections,  318. 

262  ff^estern  Monthly  Rfvieiv,  vol.  iii,  634. 

~^^  Flint.     Recollections,  219,  220. 


158  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

in  the  study  of  Timothy  Flint  to  have  followed  him 
here  in  his  meditations  and  observations. 

Viewed  on  a  bright  January  morning,  New 
Orleans  had  a  unique  and  fantastic  appearance,  more 
like  European  cities  than  any  other  in  the  United 
States,  he  was  told.  There  was  a  large  and  handsome 
brick  Presbyterian  church  building  and  a  good  socie- 
ty, which  had  had  "the  brilliant  and  pious  Larned"  ^" 
as  pastor,  and  now  had  a  very  able  man.  There  was  a 
large  and  well  conducted  hospital,  a  cathedral  and  a 
female  orphan  asylum.  Concerning  this  latter  insti- 
tution, Mr.  Flint  remarks  that  the  inmates  attended 
first  the  Presbyterian  and  then  the  Catholic  church 
and  that  it  was  founded  by  a  Mr.  Poydras,  a  man 
unique  in  that  time  and  section  for  his  charities. '"^ 
This  was  probably  Mr.  Flint's  first  experience  in  a 
cathedral-like  building  and  he  seems  to  have  spent 
many  hours  within  its  quiet  walls.  It  stood  in  the 
midst  of  the  city's  noise  but  its  walls  were  so  thick  that 
all  was  quiet  within.  The  dead  buried  beneath  the 
pavement,  the  figures  of  the  saints,  the  dim  light,  the 
unalterable  repose  and  perpetual  tranquillity  of  the 
place,  made  it  a  haven  and  a  benediction  to  Mr.  Flint. 
He  could  not  but  compare  it  with  the  brilliant,  highly 
finished  and  strongly  lighted  interiors  of  the  Protes- 
tant churches,  to  the  disadvantage  of  the  latter.^^® 

-^^  Flint.     Recollections,   302-304.     About  Larned,  69,  350. 

Reverend  Sylvester  Larned,  born  at  Pittsfield,  Mass.,  Aug.  31,  1796, 
graduated  at  Middlebury  College,  1813.  He  studied  theology  at  Princeton 
and  was  ordained  to  the  Presbyterian  ministry  in  1817.  He  went  out  as  a 
missionary  in  1817  to  New  Orleans.  He  was  distinguished  as  an  eloquent 
and  powerful  preacher.  He  died  of  yellow  fever  in  New  Orleans,  Aug.  31, 
1820.     See  Life  and  Eloquence  of  the  Rev.  S.  Larned,  by  R.  R.  Gurley. 

205  Flint.     Recollections,  305,  306. 

2«6 —  Idem,  304. 


FLORIDA  AND  NEW  ORLEANS  159 

Mr.  Flint  took  careful  note  of  the  moral  conditions 
of  the  city.  He  did  not  believe,  as  was  generally 
reported,  that  it  was  worse  than  other  large  cities  of 
the  country.  There  was  a  very  efficient  police  system 
and  there  was  no  complaint  of  the  law's  delays.  There 
were  certain  sections  of  the  city  and  certain  houses  so 
bad  and  having  such  an  aspect  of  "beastliness  and  deg- 
radation, as  to  render  them  utterly  unbearable^  But 
Mr.  Flint  thought  it  was  possible  that  these  places 
rendered  the  same  service  to  the  city  as  the  "Helotes, 
to  the  Spartan  children."  There  was  more  of  a  babel 
of  tongues  here  than  anywhere  else,  and  as  seen  and 
heard  in  the  market  place  it  was  an  experience  not  to 
be  forgotten.  The  French  were  the  same  gay  and 
light  people  everywhere.  Their  great,  brilliant,  and 
gaudy  theater  was  crowded  on  Sundays.  But  as  in- 
dication that  not  all  the  people  of  the  city  had  the  same 
mind  about  Sunday  amusements,  Mr.  Flint  tells  us 
that  he  noticed,  one  Sunday  morning,  large  theater 
bills  posted  about  the  city,  announcing  the  play  for 
that  evening.     He  says: 

Towards  evening  of  the  same  Sabbath  I  observed  that 
a  paper  of  the  same  dimensions,  and  the  same  type,  but  in 
English,  was  everywhere  posted  directly  under  the  French  bill. 
It  contained  appropriate  texts  from  the  Scriptures,  and  was 
headed  with  these  words ;  "Remember  the  Sabbath  day  to  keep  it 
holy,"  and  mentioning  that  there  would  be  divine  service  at  a 
place  that  was  named,  in  the  evening.^"^ 

There  were  many  societies  and  unions  whose  mis- 
sion it  was  to  pour  salt  into  the  city's  fountains.  There 
was  "apparently  much  excitement  of  religious  feel- 
ing."    During  the  second  winter  of  his  residence,  Mr. 

287  Flint.    Recollections,  307,  309. 


i6o  TIMOTHV    FLINT 

Flint  took  an  active  part  in  a  lecture  course  which  was 
conducted  by  the  ministers  of  the  city."'" 

Next  to  the  vice  of  the  city  the  saddest  side  of  its  life, 
to  Mr.  Flint,  was  the  awful  sickness  and  mortality. 
The  hearse  was  busy  night  and  day.  In  the  summer 
of  1822  the  destroying  angel  had  seemed  to  carry  a 
"besom"  and  there  were  two  thousand  recorded  deaths 
beside  multitudes  unnoted.  The  poor  Catholic-Irish 
and  the  northern  young  men  suffered  most.  The  lat- 
ter, he  thought,  had  but  one  chance  in  two  of  surviving 
the  first  fever  season.'"^ 
V-  Sin  and  sickness  filled  the  cemeteries.  Part  of  the 
dread  of  burial  there,  came  from  the  fact  that  for  a 
large  part  of  the  year  the  water  filled  all  graves  that 
were  not  built  above  ground.  The  Catholic  cemetery 
was  full  of  graves  and  monuments,  one  wall  being 
formed  by  contiguous  monuments  in  two  tiers.  It 
was  here  that  Mr.  Flint  delighted  to  wander  on  moon- 
light evenings,  meditating  on  the  transient  dream  of 
life,  and  the  vanity  of  the  search  for  w^ealth  which 
brought  so  many  from  every  clime,  to  end  their  days 
in  this  place."" 

Two  inscriptions  in  this  cemeter\^  were  impressed 
upon  his  memory.  One  was  on  a  handsome  slab  in 
the  upper  tier,  and  in  gilt  letters,  //  moruit  victimc 
d'honneur.  From  this  pitiable  eulogy  of  the  duel  he 
turned  with  pleasure  to  a  simple  stone  erected  by  a 
master  for  his  black  servant,  with  its  eulogy  of  the 
long,  faithful,  and  affectionate  service  of  the  slave. 
He  turns  from  these  cities  "of  the  living"  telling  us 
that  in  the  Protestant  cemetery  he  had  seen,  a  great 

2(38  piint.     Recollections,  311,  319.       -'^^  —  Idem,  311.       -''^  —  Idem,  312. 


FLORIDA  AND  NEW  ORLEANS  i6i 

number  of  the  names  of  young  men  from  Salem,  Bos- 
ton, and  all  New  England,  who  had  died  in  the  prime 
of  their  life  "du  fievre  jaune."'"^ 

Mr.  Flint  had  a  keen  appreciation  of  the  great  com- 
mercial advantages  of  New  Orleans.  He  thought  its 
location  was  unrivaled  by  any  other  city  in  the  world 
and  that  it  far  surpassed  New  York  in  this  respect. 
With  a  clergyman  from  the  north  he  estimated  the 
number  of  boats  along  the  river  front  at  between 
twelve  and  fifteen  hundred.  With  the  unlimited  ca- 
pacity for  productiveness  in  the  upper  country,  the 
trade  of  which  at  that  time  all  came  down  the  river, 
and  the  products  of  all  climes  finding  their  way  thith- 
er by  the  sea,  Mr.  Flint  could  hardly  imagine  the 
future  of  this  city."" 


-""^  Flint.     Recollections,  312,  313.  -'- —  Idem,  301,  308. 


X.  THE  HOME  ON  THE  RED  RIVER 

Not  New  England,  but  Louisiana,  was  to  become* 
the  home  of  Timothy  Flint's  family.  At  Alexandria, 
on  the  Red  River,  some  two  hundred  miles  above  New 
Orleans,  this  family  took  deep  root,  even  before  the 
death  of  its  head  in  1840.  All  connection  with  the 
land  of  its  birth  was  lost  after  a  few  years  and  it  be- 
came an  integral  part  of  the  Southland.  There  many 
of  its  members  are  found  today. 

Not  far  from  the  beginning  of  the  year  1824,  the 
removal  took  place  and  under  conditions  far  more 
comfortable  than  any  of  the  previous  travels  of  this 
family.  The  steamer  Spartan  was  chartered  to  carry 
them  and  a  few  other  passengers.  They  made  a  speedy 
and  delightful  trip  to  their  new  home."^ 

The  waters  of  the  Red  River  were  not  unlike  those 
of  the  Arkansas  and  deserved  their  name.  The  chan- 
nel was  in  most  places  narrow  and  deep,  though  very 
sinuous.  Shoals  of  alligators  were  seen  crossing  the 
stream,  "as  though  logs  had  found  the  power  of  loco- 
motion." Alexandria  was  found  to  be  a  pleasant  vil- 
lage, one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  by  river,  above  the 
Mississippi,  though  but  one  third  that  distance  in  a 
right  line.  It  was  on  a  perfectly  smooth  plain,  car- 
peted with  the  richest  verdure,  which  sank  away  into 
the  cypress  swamps  a  few  miles  back  from  the  river. 

273  Flint.     Recollections,   320,   321. 


154  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

On  the  opposite  and  eastern  bank  of  the  river,  the  pine 
bluffs  came  near.  The  white  houses  with  their  piazzas, 
showed  themselves  under  the  beautiful  china  and  ca- 
talpa  trees.  The  music  of  the  falls  just  above  the 
village,  reminded  them  of  the  distant  roar  of  the  At- 
lantic, and  lulled  them  pleasantly  to  sleep. '^^ 

Alexandria  was  in  the  center  of  one  of  the  most 
important  cotton  districts  of  the  south.  It  was  the 
seat  of  justice  for  the  parish  of  Rapide.  There  were 
bankers,  lawyers,  doctors,  and  editors  enough  but  the 
country  was  new  and  the  state  of  literary  culture  was 
very  low.  The  college^  over  which  Mr.  Flint  pre- 
sided, was  in  a  huge  but  rather  ugly  building.  It  had 
absorbed  great  sums  of  money,  and  was  still  supported 
generously  by  the  state  and  by  its  patrons.  There 
were  large  numbers  of  students,  many  of  them  board- 
ing with  the  principal.  The  work  was  elementary 
but  none  the  less  laborious.  Three  Presbyterian  min- 
isters had  already  laid  their  ashes  here,  one  of  them 
the  Reverend  Mr.  Hull  having  died  just  before  Mr. 
Flint  took  charge  of  the  seminary  and  church."*" 

Mr.  Flint  found  his  work  very  pleasant  but  exact- 
ing for  a  man  of  such  limited  strength  as  his.  The 
preaching  demanded  was  of  the  highly  emotional  type. 
He  was  very  much  isolated  as  to  fellowship,  the  nearest 
minister  with  whom  he  could  exchange  being  at 
Natchez,  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  distant  by  river. 
The  roads  were  much  nearer  but  impassable  most  of 
the  year.  There  were  only  three  Baptist  churches  in 
the  state,  and  Mr.  Flint's  church  was  the  only  one  of 
its  order  in  that  part  of  the  state.     The  Methodists 

-•■•Flint.     RecoUerlions,  322,   323.  -"•' —  Idem,  323. 


THE  HOME  ON  THE  RED  RIVER  165 

were  at  work  with  their  usual  zeal;  but  their  hostility 
to  slavery  limited  them  very  much  in  their  immediate 
sphere  of  influence.  There  were  many  Catholic 
churches.  The  religious  and  social  conditions  seemed 
hopeful  to  Mr.  Flint,  there  being  some  things  that 
he  would  like  to  have  seen  transferred  to  the  more 
serious  people  of  the  north.^^" 

Mr.  Flint  sa3'^s  the  first  year  in  Alexandria  passed 
very  pleasantly  "in  the  discharge  of  uniform  duties." 
His  society  was  small  but  embraced  some  of  the  most 
amiable  families  that  he  had  anywhere  met.  The 
people  were  very  attentive  to  his  ministry.'" 

It  was  here  that  Mr.  Flint  met  Judge  Henry  Bul- 
lard,  who  became  one  of  his  most  intimate  and  valued 
friends.  We  have  already  noticed  that  the  father  of 
this  man,  Reverend  John  BuUard  of  Fitchburg,  Mass- 
achusetts, was  a  neighbor  and  friend  of  Mr.  Flint, 
when  he  was  at  Lunenburg.  The  judge  was  eight 
years  younger  than  Mr.  Flint,  but  he  was  a  Harvard 
man,  1807,  ^^^  ^^  every  way  congenial.^"  Mr.  Flint 
says  about  him  in  the  Recollections  :"^ 

If  any  one  would  know  the  value  of  a  companion,  bred  In  the 
same  region,  formed  to  similar  habits,  versed  in  all  kinds  of  liter- 
ature, a  scholar,  a  gentleman,  and  a  man  capable  of  sincere  and 
ardent  friendship,  let  him  wander  without  such  a  friend  ten 
years  in  the  wilderness  of  the  West,  and  then,  where  such  a  thing 
was  least  expected,  let  him  find  such  a  friend. 

In  the  preface  to  Francis  Berrian,  Mr.  Flint  pays 
a  warm  tribute  to  the  friendship  of  Bullard.     He  also 

'-'•^  Flint.     Recollections,   340,    341. 

2^'^  —  Idem,  353.  ' 

-"•*  See  Harvard  Class  Book  for  the  Class  of  iSo/,  in  Hansard  Library, 
manuscripts  department. 
2'"  Page  353. 


i66  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

says  that  this  story  grew  out  of  conversations  with  the 
judge  and  that  he  is  indebted  to  him  for  much  of  the 
material  in  it:  "You  well  know,  that  no  inconsider- 
able portion  of  these  adventures  is  anything,  rather 
than  fiction."'"*^  Judge  Bullard  had  spent  several 
years  in  Mexico  as  a  soldier  of  fortune,  before  he  set- 
tled at  Alexandria.  Much  of  the  interest  of  Francis 
Berrian  comes  from  this  mingling  of  the  story  of  his 
friend  with  the  writer's  fiction. 

In  the  village  of  Alexandria,  clean  and  delightful 
every  way  to  the  eye,  they  had  a  comfortable  residence 
near  the  school  building.  The  breezes  were  pleasant, 
but  in  them,  carried  from  the  wide  spreading  swamps, 
were  the  deadly  fever  germs.  Here,  as  every  where 
in  this  section,  Mr.  Flint  says,  the  rich  soils  were  the 
places  of  greatest  danger,  and  the  poor  soils  of  the 
pine  woods  the  healthiest.  Late  in  May,  1824,  Mr. 
Flint  being  quite  ill  at  the  time,  the  family  retired 
to  the  pine  woods  where  they  built  a  cottage  near  those 
of  two  other  families  with  whom  they  were  intimate. 
Judge  BuUard's  family  being  one  of  them  doubtless. 
Here  in  the  woods  there  was  a  considerable  settlement 
of  people  from  Alexandria  and  the  region  about."^^ 

This  summer  in  the  pine  woods  is  the  pleasantest 
and  most  idyllic  of  any  that  we  have  recorded  in  Mr. 
Flint's  life.  And  so  he  thinks  himself."^"  There  was 
every  charm  of  nature,  charms  to  which  he  and  his 
family  were  most  responsive.  There  was  also  the  rare 
blessing  of  health  and  vigor.  He  was  seized  by  a 
"poetical  paroxysm,"  and  wrote: 

-^^  Flint.    Francis  Berrian,  p.  iii. 

281  Flint.     Recollections,  353-364. 

282  —  Idem,  355. 


THE  HOME  ON  THE  RED  RIVER  167 

For  I  remember  well  the  scorching  day, 
When  weary,  faint,  and  wan,  I  saw  thee  first. 
Expecting  soon  to  lay  the  load  of  life 
Beneath  the  turf;  but  thy  cool  wave 
And  healthful  breeze  inspired  other  hopes. ^*^ 

They  were  in  comfort,  and  in  the  midst  of  warm 
and  cherished  friends.  The  keenness  of  their  pleas- 
ure is  perhaps  best  indicated  by  the  poems  written  at 
this  time,  which  recite  their  experiences  and  medita- 
tions.''* 

Continuing  his  song  of  the  forest  and  stream,  Mr. 
Flint  says: 

Thy  fountains,  springing  midst  the  wavy  pines, 
Well  from  the  hills,  to  join  thee,  o'er  a  sand 
As  pure  as  mountain-snow ;  so  bright. 
That  the  gay  red-bird  tunes  his  note  of  joy, 
Soon  as  he  settles  on  thy  laurel  branch. 
How  often,  ere  the  jocund  morn  had  ting'd 
Thy  groves  with  gold,  my  angling  rod  in  hand, 
From  thy  pellucid  wave  I've  drawn  the  trout. 
In  all  his  pride  of  mottled  white  and  gold, 
And  born  the  cumbrous  prize,  triumphant,  home. 

There  was  no  "jealous  lock  or  latch"  in  their  Eden, 
for: 

By  joint  consent  with  these  dear  friends  we  threw 
Observance,  form  and  state  all  to  the  winds. 

Three  or  four  families  took  many  of  their  meals 
together.  The  breakfasts  were  eaten  under  the  beaches 
near  the  stream  where  the  abundant  trout- Mr.  Flint 
caught  over  two  thousand  of  them  averaging  over  a 

-^^  Flint.     Recollections,   356. 

-^*  Beside  the  two  poems  written  at  this  time  by  Mr.  Flint  and  Micah, 
there  is  a  third  poem  written  by  the  latter  at  some  other  time  which  Is  closely 
related  to  this  occasion  and  experience.  Mr.  Flint  incorporates  it  here  with 
this  summer's  experiences.     See  Recollections,  359-364. 


i68  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

pound  in  weight,  during  this  summer-were  tossed  by 
the  anglers  to  the  black  girls  who  did  the  cooking. 

And  then,  when  evening  from  the  azure  east, 
Threw  her  deep  mantle  o'er  the  dark-brown  pine, 
We've  sat,  well  pleased,  to  list  the  breezy  moan, 
Nature's  Eolian  harp,  to  sink,  or  swell 
Along  the  boundless  forest-tops,  in  strains. 
That  awe,  impress,  or  council  sleep :  - 
This  vesper  hymn  prolong'd,  till  the  bright  moon, 
Thron'd  on  her  silver  car,  and  twinkling  stars 
Seem  but  to  float  just  o'er  the  forest  tops. 
Sudden  the  blazing  torches  rise  around, 
And  pour  their  flickering  light  amidst  the  trees. 
And  spread  illusions  o'er  our  humble  sheds, 
As  those,  that  mark  enchantment's  fabled  tales. 
Our  cabins  turn  to  palaces,  and  the  dark  pine, 
Seen  half  in  living  light,  and  half  in  shade, 
Half  lucid  verdure,  and  half  deepening  gloom, 
Shows,  like  the  light  of  life,  shut  by  the  grave 
From  the  dark  regions  of  eternity.^'*'^ 

As  Mr.  Flint  looked  back  on  these  happy  months 
he  could  detect  that  even  then  there  w^as  a  "sad  pre- 
sentiment" hanging  over  him.  He  seemed  always  to 
fear  when  the  cup  of  happiness  was  at  his  lips  lest  it 
betoken  a  bitter  one  to  follow.  Micah's  lines  writ- 
ten on  this  same  occasion  would  be  expressive  of  the 
father's  feelings.     Micah  says: 

And,  lost  in  thought,  how  deeply  pondered, 
On  my  distant  native  land. 

Her  granite  cliffs,  that  breast  the  ocean, 
Dashing  back  the  Atlantic  wave. 

How  soon  and  how  sadly  the  father  was  to  see  those 


Flint.    Recollections,  356,  357. 


THE  HOME  ON  THE  RED  RIVER  169 

granite  shores,  neither  of  them  could  know,  when  they 
went  back  to  the  village  in  the  fall,  singing: 

Farewell,  ye  groves,  that  I  am  leaving. 
Where  I've  spent  the  summer  heats; 
Autumnal  gales  now  force  us,  grieving. 
To  resume  our  winter  seats. ***' 

The  Recollections^'^''  tell  the  story  of  the  few  months 
that  followed  the  return  from  the  hills.  A  part  of 
it  is  as  follows : 

In  October  of  the  last  year,  we  resumed  our  laborious  duties 
in  the  Seminary.  I  had  my  son  and  another  young  man  under 
a  particular  course  of  personal  instruction.  I  had  boarders,  a 
numerous  school,  preached  after  a  sort  and  as  I  could,  and  was 
trying  to  digest  this  work.  A  few  weeks  of  this  overplied  exer- 
tion began  to  make  me  feel  the  illness,  which  brought  me  to  your 
country.  I  struggled  to  vanquish  it,  by  resolution  and  exercise, 
until  the  eighth  of  last  December.  I  was  then  seized  with  a 
bilious  complaint,  accompanied  with  spasm,  which  confined  me  to 
my  bed.  All  the  aids  of  medicine  were  unavailing.  The  middle 
of  January,  I  was  just  able  with  assistance,  to  mount  on  horse- 
back. Accompanied  by  my  friend.  Judge  Bullard,  of  whom  you 
have  so  often  heard  me  speak,  I  commenced  a  journey  to  Natchi- 
toches and  the  interior  beyond  for  my  health. 

There  is  a  full  description  of  this  journey  to  and 
from  the  Mexican  frontier  on  the  Sabine  River.  But 
we  must  confine  ourselves  to  the  things  that  most  inti- 
mately concern  Mr.  Flint. 

They  journeyed  slowly  and  at  first  the  sick  man 
gained  some  strength.  Their  coming  was  known  and 
everywhere  the  planters  vied  with  each  other  in  their 
attentions  to  the  minister  and  judge.  At  Natchitoches, 
they  spent  two  weeks,  most  hospitably  entertained, 
and  were  deeply  interested  in  the  old  town.     Mr. 

286  Flint.    Recollections,   357,   358.  ^^'^  —  Idem,  ^6^  Q. 


170  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

Flint  speaks  of  its  history  as  a  succession  of  Indian 
poii'ico'ws,  Spanish  fandangoes^  French  balls  and 
American  frolics.  To  tell  the  story  he  must  be  the 
"great  Unknown,"  and  "have  ten  volumes  for  elbow." 
"Pity,  that  all  this  interesting  matter  should  be  lost, 
for  want  of  an  historian,"  says  Mr.  Flint.'*"* 

He  was  called  upon  here  to  act  as  chaplain  for  a 
French  surgeon  named  Prevot,  who  was  to  be  hanged 
for  killing  a  young  attorney  from  the  north,  a  Mr. 
Mills,  because  he  would  not  fight  a  duel  with  him. 
The  Frenchman  belonged  to  "the  school  of  Voltaire 
and  Delambert,"  which  he  said  was  a  bad  kind  of 
school  to  make  a  good  Christian.  He  at  first  refused 
to  talk  with  Mr.  Flint  thinking  he  was  a  Roman  priest. 
Learning  that  Flint  was  a  Protestant  he  said  eagerly, 
"vous  avez  raison  done."  Mr.  Flint  accompanied 
him  to  the  gallows,  offered  a  prayer  at  the  request  of 
the  condemned  man,  saying  for  him  in  English  to  the 
assembled  people,  that  he  died  asking  the  mercy  of 
God,  and  in  charity  with  all  men.  His  last  words  to 
Mr.  Flint  were:  "Adieu,  ministre!  je  vous  remer- 
cie."^^^ 

Mr.  Flint  and  his  friend  passed  on  to  the  Spanish 
frontier  and  the  village  of  Adayes.*  This  was  a  typi- 
cal Spanish  village,  and  the  buildings  and  people  of- 
fered an  interesting  contrast  to  the  French  settlements. 
Returning  from  this  point  they  were  lost  in  the  woods 
for  a  time  and  caught  in  a  rain  storm  before  they  were 
finally  guided  on  their  way  to  the  United  States  Post, 
"Cantonment  Jessup."  Here  they  were  welcomed  by 
Colonel  Many  who  commanded  two  companies  of 

-*^  Flint.   Recollections,  ■^66.    -^^  —  /^?ot,  367-369.     *  Now  spelled  Naies. 


THE  HOME  ON  THE  RED  RIVER  171 

soldiers.  On  reaching  Natchitoches  again,  Mr.  Flint 
was  unable  to  ride,  and  returned  to  his  home  by  boat, 
having  had  little  benefit  from  his  excursion.'"" 

The  illness  continued.  During  the  sultry  weather 
of  March  he  grew  so  much  worse  that  friends  and  phy- 
sicians joined  in  urging  him  to  go  to  the  north  as  a  last 
resort.  Many  cases  were  cited  to  him  to  prove  the 
efficacy  of  such  a  step.     But  to  the  exhausted  invalid, 

Who  had  been  for  years  sustained  by  the  most  assiduous  nurs- 
ing and  care,  it  seemed  a  formidable  experiment  to  commit  myself 
to  such  a  great  journey,  and  to  separate  myself  from  every  friend. 

You  know  enough  of  my  habits  to  be  aware  how  often,  in  my 
days  of  distress  and  my  nights  of  watching,  I  laid  my  case  before 
Him,  who  alone  can  help;  how  often,  in  the  vibrations  of  feeling, 
dififerent  determinations  would  alternately  have  the  mastery.  .  . 
A  carriage,  a  horse,  a  servant,  all  the  little  delicacies  so 
necessary  to  the  fastidious  appetite  of  an  invalid,  were  constantly 
furnished  me  by  my  friends.  Kindness  of  every  sort  may  be 
rendered,  and  the  heart  may  swell  with  grateful  thoughts,  which 
cannot  clothe  themselves  in  words,  and  yet  disease  go  steadily  on. 
So  it  was  with  me.  I  saw  that  I  could  not  long  survive  in  that 
region.  I  determined  to  disengage  myself  from  my  family,  cast 
myself  on  the  care  of  God,  and  commence  a  journey  of  twenty-five 
hundred  miles  for  my  native  land,  looking  forward  as  the  most 
fortunate  consummation,  that  I  had  a  right  to  hope,  to  revisit  the 
scenes  and  the  friends  of  my  first  years,  and  after  so  much  wander- 
ing and  toil,  to  be  buried  by  the  "graves  of  my  father  and  my 
mother."  -"^ 

So  the  journey  was  undertaken  on  the  fourth  of 
April,  1825.  When  he  arrived  at  the  home  of  his 
friend,  Dr.  James  Flint  in  Salem,  he  said  he  "had 
come  home  to  die."  '^' 


-''"Flint.     Recollections,   369-373.  ^si —  Idem,  373,  374, 

-^-Encyclopedia  Americana:  Supplementary  Volume,  vol.  xiv,  270,  271. 


XL  A  NEW  LEASE  OF  LIFE 

Mr.  Flint  in  telling  the  story  of  this  long  and  pain- 
ful journey  says: 

It  is  unnecessary  for  me  to  speak  of  the  forced  cheerfulness  of 
my  family  and  my  friends,  the  presages  of  people,  who  talked 
with  confidence  in  their  words  to  me,  and  who  instantly  used  a 
different  language  among  themselves.  Friendship  and  kindness 
could  do  nothing  for  me,  that  was  not  done.  A  kind  neighbor 
was  to  accompany  me  as  far  as  Baltimore.  The  morning  sun 
shone  brightly.  The  bell  had  struck  for  calling  together  the 
pupils  in  the  seminary.  They  bade  me  farewell  in  the  court-yard. 
My  family  accompanied  me  to  the  steps.  Perhaps  the  hardest 
parting  of  the  whole  was  with  a  little  fellow  between  three  and 
four,  with  a  dark  Spanish  countenance,  but  a  brilliant  eye,  that 
easily  kindles  with  joy  or  is  suffused  with  a  tear,  according  to  the 
passing  emotion.  He  is  our  Joseph  [James  Timothy],  born  to 
us  after  an  interval  of  fourteen  years,  excepting  the  infant  which 
we  lost  on  the  Mississippi.  He  was  marching  in  the  court-yard 
with  his  military  hat  and  feather,  clad  in  a  new  suit,  and  with  a 
tin  sword,  given  to  keep  him  away  from  this  painful  business  of 
parting.  But  he  had  come,  and  saw  that  there  was  restrained 
emotion  and  uncommon  countenances.  He  came  up  to  me  and 
asked  why  mama  and  sister  looked  so  strange.  I  kissed  him,  not 
daring  even  to  turn  back,  or  cast  one  "longing,  lingering  look 
behind ;"  and  sustained  by  my  two  sons  went  on  board  the  steam- 
boat Natchitoches,  bound  for  Natchez,  parted  from  my  sons,  took 
my  berth,  heard  the  parting  gun  fired  on  the  bow,  and  instantly 
felt,  that  we  were  descending  the  river.-*^ 

At  Natchez  two  physicians  visited  and  aided  him 

293  Flint.     Recollections,   374,    ff. 


174  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

with  counsel  and  medicines.  He  took  the  fine  new 
steamer  Grecian  for  Louisville  and  made  a  speedy 
journey  in  beautiful  weather  which  he  would  have 
greatly  enjoyed  but  for  his  extreme  illness.  There 
were  such  mornings  as  would  almost  create  a  "soul 
beneath  the  ribs  of  death."  But  all  the  beauty,  and 
the  busy  and  joyous  life  on  the  gay  steamer,  struck  a 
key  not  at  all  in  unison  with  his  feelings.  Many  nights 
he  took  a  mental  leave  of  family  and  world,  thinking 
it  unlikely  that  he  would  survive  until  morning.  On 
the  eleventh  of  April  he  records,  "we  passed  the  place 
, where  our  babe  lies  buried."  In  ten  days  he  had 
reached  Louisville.  What  a  contrast  with  their  sad 
and  lonely  journey  up  the  great  river  in  1819.  He 
now  traveled  one  "hundred  miles  a  day,  against  the 
whole  weight  of  the  Mississippi  current."  Then  for 
fifty  days  they  had  struggled  with  the  current,  and 
thought  ten  miles  a  day  good  progress."^* 

Louisville  had  grown  to  be  a  fine  town,  the  very 
smell  at  the  landing  indicating  a  great  and  growing 
place.  The  log  farm  houses  along  the  river  had  given 
place  to  houses  of  brick.  At  Cincinnati,  he  was  still 
more  surprised  with  the  change  that  ten  years,  or  a 
little  less  time,  had  wrought.  He  stayed  here  two 
days,  visited  by  friends  and  relatives,  and  aided  by 
the  then  famous  Dr.  Drake."^^ 

On  the  passage  to  Wheeling  his  complaint  took  a 
new  form  which  still  more  weakened  him,  but  the 
striking  changes  in  the  country  continued  to  attract 

-^*  Flint.     Recollections,  377.     Also  Geography  and  History,  vol.  i,  238. 

295  Mr.  Flint  speaks  of  Dr.  D.,  one  of  the  respectable  physicians  of  the 
place.  He  was  probably  referring  to  Dr.  Drake,  a  famous  physician  of 
Cincinnati  and  a  man  that  later  Mr.  Flint  was  to  know  intimately. 


A  NEW  LEASE  OF  LIFE  175 

his  notice.  He  was  reminded  of  Caesar's  changing 
Rome  from  brick  to  marble  when  he  saw  the  Ohio 
villages.  Wheeling,  when  he  first  saw  it,  "was  a 
smoky,  mis-shapen  village."  Now  he  found  rows  of 
massive  brick  buildings,  and  lodged  in  a  hotel  equal 
to  anything  on  the  Atlantic  coast.  The  great  national 
road  from  here  to  Baltimore  seemed  even  more  mar- 
velous than  other  changes  and  especially  as  he  remem- 
bered their  first  toilsome  and  dangerous  journey  to 
Pittsburg  over  the  mountain  road.  The  land  travel 
was  more  exhausting  than  the  river.  At  Washington, 
Pennsylvania,  he  was  obliged  to  rest  two  days,  receiv- 
ing much  kindness  and  attention,  but  being  still  fur- 
ther inconvenienced  for  traveling  in  a  stage,  by  the 
application  of  a  large  blister.'''*' 

Speaking  of  the  journey  through  the  mountain  re- 
gion, Mr.  Flint  says: 

We  were  driven  down  the  most  considerable  of  them,  a  dis- 
tance of  between  four  and  five  miles,  at  a  furious  rate,  and  at  mid- 
night, and  just  on  the  verge  of  precipices,  that  it  would  be  fearful 
to  look  down  upon  at  mid-day.  I  suffered  more  than  I  can  de- 
scribe, from  weakness  and  exhaustion.  We  crossed  the  Potomac, 
stayed  a  night  at  Frederick,  and  I  was  cheered  with  a  distant  view 
of  the  Atlantic  regions.  .  .  Having  arrived  in  Boston  and  met 
some  friends,  who  are  very  dear  to  me,  and  from  whom  I  parted 
between  ten  and  eleven  years  before,  as  I  departed  for  the  West, 
I  could  see  by  the  very  attempt  to  suppress  surprise  and  exclama- 
tion, how  time  and  disease  had  changed  my  countenance.  .  . 
A  few  hours  brought  me  to  you,  my  dear  friend  [Dr.  James 
Flint,  Salem],  and  having  accomplished  the  object  of  my 
prayers,  having  seen  again  my  earliest  and  most  constant  friend,  I 
felt  in  that  joyful  hour  of  meeting,  as  though,  could  I  have  had 
my  family  with  me,  miserable  as  my  health  was,  I  should  have 
296  Flint.     Recollections,  378-380. 


176  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

been  the  happiest  of  the  happy.  But  at  the  end  of  this  long  pil- 
grimage, \\ith  more  than  two  thousand  miles  interposed  between 
me  and  my  family,  your  countenance,  and  that  of  my  other 
friends,  told  me  but  too  plainly,  that  these  halc\on  hours  were  not 
expected  to  be  long  repeated.  There  are  no  constant  things  here, 
but  disappointments  and  tears.  Happy  for  us,  that  there  remain- 
eth  a  rest  for  the  people  of  God.-*' 

While  the  father  is  thus  thinking  and  writing  of  his 
family,  busy  about  their  home  and  school  duties  in  the 
far  south,  the  eldest  son  is  writing: 

I  implore  his  blessing 

On  an  absent  father's  head, 
That,  health  and  hope  possessing, 

He  may  yet  return  to  spread 
A  smile  of  joy  and  gladness 

O'er  an  anxious  mother's  brow, 
And  chase  the  look  of  sadness. 

Which  is  there  imprinted  now."*^* 

Here  ends  not  only  the  story  of  the  long  journey 
home  but  the  Recollections.  Thus  far  it  was  written 
during  the  summer  in  New  England,  and  dedicated  at 
Salem  in  September  to  Doctor  Flint.  At  the  request 
of  his  friend,  another  letter  was  written  from  Cin- 
cinnati in  September  on  his  way  home.  This  is  print- 
ed as  a  supplemental  letter  in  that  same  volume.  In 
this  he  gives  his  impressions  of  things  in  New  England 
as  he  saw  them  after  ten  years  absence.  The  very 
marked  industrial,  social,  and  religious  revolution, 
then  taking  place,  was  a  matter  of  the  greatest  interest 
and  concern  to  Mr.  Flint,  and  he  returns  to  it  often  in 
the  letters  written  during  the  next  ten  years,  in  which 
period  he  was  several  times  in  New  England.     These 

29"  Flint.     Recollections,   380-383. 

298  Flint,  Micah  P.     The  Hunter  and  Other  Poems,  129. 


A  NEW  LEASE  OF  LIFE  177 

fully  recorded  impressions  are  of  importance  for  an 
understanding  of  Mr.  Flint's  character  and  will  be 
noticed  later. 

Dr.  James  Flint  says  in  his  article  in  the  Encyclo- 
pedia Americana  that  the  effect  of  the  climate,  of  quiet 
and  rest,  and  of  a  trip  they  took  together  to  Saratoga, 
was  to  so  far  restore  his  friend's  health,  that  he  was 
able  to  write  the  Recollections.'''''  This  Mr.  Flint  did 
at  the  urgent  request  of  his  friends.  This  book  it  ap- 
pears was  all  written  in  New  England  at  this  time 
except  the  supplement  as  above  noted.  The  first  let- 
ter or  chapter  is  dated  Alexandria,  Red  River,  Octo- 
ber, 1824.  Part  of  this  may  be  a  letter  written  at  that 
date  to  Doctor  Flint,  but  at  least  a  part  of  even  this 
letter  was  written  after  his  return  to  New  England. 
It  is  quite  possible  that  he  used  some  of  his  own  letters 
to  Doctor  Flint  and  notes  made  earlier,  but  it  is  to  be 
remembered  that  he  says  he  wrote  "without  books"  or 
journal.^"' 

Besides  the  journeys  mentioned  by  Doctor  Flint, 
Timothy  probably  visited  his  home  in  Reading, 
though  he  does  not  mention  this  visit  and  seems  to 
have  made  his  head-quarters  in  Salem.  At  the  home 
church  he  found  a  new  minister  in  the  place  of  the 
aged  Eliab  Stone,  who  had  died  in  August,  1822.  His 
father  was  still  living  at  the  place  of  his  birth  and  at 
the  advanced  age  of  eighty-eight  years.  His  mother 
had  been  dead  near  twenty  years.  He  revisited  Lun- 
enburg where  he  was  greeted  as  one  come  back  from 

-^^Encyclopedia  Americana:  Supplementary  Volume,  vol.  xiv,  270,  271. 
Giiswold  in  his  Prose  Writers  of  America  [152]  says  that  Flint  began  to 
write  the  Recollections  soon  after  his  removal  to  Alexandria. 

300  piint.     Recollections,  4,  296. 


178  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

the  grave.  They  had  thought  of  him  too,  in  their 
humble  annals,  as  a  personage  of  history.  He  says 
of  this  experience: 

All  that  ought  to  have  been  remembered  by  my  former  people 
in  my  favour,  was  remembered.  All  that  in  those  days  of  inex- 
perience, of  untamed  youth  and  temperament,  related  to  me, 
which  I  could  have  wished  forgotten,  seemed  to  have  been  com- 
pletely consigned  to  oblivion.  .  .  One  burst  of  affectionate 
remembrance  was  manifested  by  the  whole  people.  I  felt  pain- 
fully, that  in  wandering  from  that  rustic,  but  feeling  people,  I  had 
wandered  from  home.  This  excitement,  so  many  recollections, 
alternately  delightful  and  painful,  stories  of  the  living,  the  suf- 
fering, and  the  dead,  the  necessity  of  conversing  with  so  many, 
soon  renewed  my  indisposition,  and  1  was  compelled  to  hasten 
away.^°^ 

Much  restored  in  health  Mr.  Flint  began  in  Sep- 
tember, the  journey  to  his  home  in  Alexandria.  He 
had  finished  his  Recollections  and  left  the  manuscript 
with  the  publishers  who  brought  it  out  in  March  of 
the  following  year.  Dr.  James  Flint  says  that  he 
began  the  writing  of  Francis  Berrian  on  the  return 
trip  home,  and  finished  it  during  the  following  win- 
ter.^°"  This  story  opens  with  a  description  of  the 
writer's  journey  from  Massachusetts  to  the  regions  of 
the  Spanish  frontier.  Just  what  is  fact  and  what  is 
fiction  can  not  be  told,  as  the  journey  progresses,  but 
we  are  enabled  to  see  Mr.  Flint  making  a  comfortable 
and  glad  return  to  his  family,  enjoying  himself  with 
newly  made  and  old  friends  on  the  palatial  steam- 
boats, and  devoting  himself  to  reading  and  writing  as 

301  Flint.     Recollections,   388. 

302  Doctor  Flint  says  that  Francis  Berrian  was  begun  on  the  return  journey 
in  the  fall  of  1826.  As  the  work  was  brought  out  in  the  summer  of  1826,  it  is 
clear  that  he  should  have  said  the  fall  of  1825.  See  article  in  Encyclopedia 
Ajnericana:  Supplementary  Volume. 


A  NEW  LEASE  OF  LIFE  179 

steam  and  current  carried  him  south.  We  have  also 
a  glimpse  of  the  glad  home  coming  in  the  Francis 
Berrian. 

We  do  not  know  whether  Mr.  Flint  resumed  his 
school  work  or  not.  His  son  Micah  must  have  been 
in  the  practise  of  his  profession  as  a  lawyer  about  this 
time  and  was  perhaps  already  interested  in  a  planta- 
tion. The  family  circumstances  continued  to  grow 
easier  from  the  beginning  of  their  residence  here.  It 
seems  rather  likely  that  Mr.  Flint  devoted  himself 
chiefly  to  literary  work  during  the  winters  of  1825- 
1826  and  1826-1827.  A  number  of  articles  that  ap- 
pear in  the  first  numbers  of  the  Western  Monthly 
Review,  beginning  in  May,  1827,  appear  to  have  been 
written  in  Louisiana,  and  it  would  seem  likely  that 
nearly  all  of  the  work  on  the  Geography  and  History 
was  done  before  he  moved  to  Cincinnati.^"^ 

On  April  27,  1826,  Mr.  Flint  again  left  his  home  in 
Louisiana  for  an  expected  absence  of  eight  months. 
He  was  ill  at  the  time  and  this  trip  was  probably  taken 
partly  for  the  same  purpose  as  the  one  a  year  before. 
But  he  was  not  nearly  so  helpless,  and  hopeless  as  then, 
and  seems  to  have  had  certain  business  enterprises  in 
mind.  Dr.  James  Flint  says  he  brought  the  manu- 
script of  Francis  Berrian  with  him  on  this  journey.^"* 
It  was  published  during  this  summer  and  while  Mr. 
Flint  was  in  the  north.  We  do  not  know  whether  he 
remained  as  long  as  he  intended  and  are  only  told  by 
Dr.  James  Flint  that  he  once  more  rejoined  his  fam- 

303  The  Geography  and  History  was  copyrighted,  Oct.  19,  1827.  See 
also  the  preface  to  the  different  editions.  See  Revieiv,  vol.  i,  69,  71,  81,  op- 
posite 310. 

30*  See  footnote  302. 


i8o  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

ily  in  the  autumn  of  1826.  Some  of  his  time  while 
in  the  north  must  have  been  spent  in  literary  work, 
especially  on  the  Geography  and  History  which  was 
ready  for  the  public  in  the  fall  of  the  next  year.  He 
had  these  volumes  printed  in  Cincinnati,  and  it  is  like- 
ly that  so  extensive  a  work  would  take  a  Cincinnati 
printer  many  months  to  accomplish.  In  all  probabil- 
ity  he  completed  his  arrangements  while  north  in  1826 
for  removal  to  Cincinnati  and  for  the  beginning  of 
his  magazine  and  publishing  business  early  in  1827. 

In  the  October  number  of  the  first  volume  of  the 
Western  Monthly  Review  we  have  a  ten  page  article 
entitled,  "Extracts  from  the  Journal  of  a  Voyage  from 
Alexandria,  Red  River,  Louisiana,  to  New  York,  by 
way  of  New  Orleans  and  the  Gulf  of  Mexico."  There 
are  no  names  but  there  are  unfailing  signs  in  this  jour- 
nal that  it  is  Mr.  Flint's  and  that  he  was  then  in  "the 
laudable  habit  of  taking  notes  during  travels"  even 
if  it  had  become  "the  bore  to  the  public."  ^°'  Mr. 
Flint  is  always  at  his  best  when  describing  the  expe- 
riences of  a  journey.  Of  the  many  such  accounts  which 
we  have,  none  are  more  interesting  than  this.  It  is 
the  story  of  the  second  trip  to  the  north  and  was  made 
in  1826. 

He  embarked  at  New  Orleans,  May  i ,  "in  the  large, 
new  ship  Azelia,  Captain  Wibray,  to  sail  next  day." 
He  had  spent  two  days  in  New  Orleans,  which  place 
he  had  not  visited  for  two  years.  The  nights  in  New 
Orleans  were  made  memorable  by  the  immense  band 
of  large  bull  frogs  in  the  nearby  swamp.  "The  depth, 
number,  and  variety  of  the  cries  of  these  animals  unit- 

305  K'estern  Mont/ily  Revieiv,  vol.  iii,  270.  For  the  story  of  the  journey 
see  vol.  i,  313-322. 


A  NEW  LEASE  OF  LIFE  i8i 

ed  the  ludicrous  and  the  terrible."  The  invasion  of 
mosquitoes  through  a  fissure  in  the  netting,  created  a 
situation  not  only  "ludicrous"  but  so  "terrible"  that 
a  black  girl  must  drive  out  the  enemy  and  mend  the 
rent  before  there  could  be  rest.^"'' 

At  evening  time  a  steamboat  gripped  the  Azelia 
on  one  side  and  a  French  ship  bound  for  Havre  on 
the  other  side,  and  carried  them  ofif  like  "a  cat  lugging 
her  kittens."  By  morning  they  are  set  free  on  the 
"illimitable  sea."  The  leave  taking  of  the  French 
and  Americans  with  the  friends  to  be  left  behind,  the 
contrasts  in  the  expression  of  emotions,  are  of  keen  in- 
terest to  this  observer  who  seems  equally  to  wonder 
at  the  ways  of  nature  and  of  man.  He  joins  in  spirit 
with  the  worship  conducted  by  the  Roman  priests  on 
the  French  ship,  for  do  not  even  the  black  hands  on 
the  grimy  tug  below,  uncover  and  stand  in  reverence. 
The  first  sight  of  the  sea  carries  him  back  to  the  days 
of  his  boyhood  and  the  many  hours  that  were  spent 
in  the  chill  and  healthful  wave  of  the  Atlantic.  But 
from  the  smooth  river  current  to  the  sea  is  a  sharp 
change  and  in  a  few  minutes  all  the  bilious  passengers 
are  sick.  Mr.  Flint  remains  on  deck  as  long  as  he 
can  see  land,  dreaming  of  all  that  has  happened  on 
those  receding  shores.^" 

For  two  days  he  is  disabled,  but  on  the  third  there 
is  a  dead  calm  following  the  brisk  north  breeze.  For 
three  days  they  lie  motionless  in  the  water  with  the 
spires  of  Havana  visible  from  the  topmast.  They 
amuse  themselves  with  the  sea  birds,  turtles,  and  with 
sinking  objects.     All  of  these  latter  are  turned  suc- 

306  if/estern  Monthly  Review,  vol.  i,  315. 

307  —  Idem,  vol.  i,  315-317. 


1 82  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

cessively  into  silver,  gold,  pearl,  and  diamond  as  they 
sink  in  the  clear,  still  water.  The  captain  and  sailors 
of  a  Yankee  schooner  come  on  board  and  furnish 
amusement  for  the  passengers  with  their  dialect  and 
''apparent  simplicity."  Even  Mr.  Flint  can  see  them 
with  the  southern  eye,  but  "apparent"  proclaims  him 
as  he  always  claimed  to  be  "a  true  son  of  New  Eng- 
land." ^"''  After  the  calm,  a  storm,  and  even  worse 
sea-sickness,  which  has  one  virtue;  causing  an  indif- 
ference to  existence  which  "excludes  fear."  But  the 
grand  spectacle  rouses  him  the  second  day  of  the  storm. 
What  the  poets  have  not  been  able  to  tell  him  he  can 
now  see  and  feel  for  himself,  though  he  has  to  be  laid 
on  a  mattress  in  the  companion-way,  to  see  it.""^ 

On  Sunday  morning,  the  sixteenth  day  of  the  voy- 
age, the  beautiful  bay  and  city  of  New  York  open  be- 
fore them.  Here  they  are  only  planting.  In  New 
Orleans  was  green  corn  and  cucumbers.  The  verdure 
here  is  not  so  deep  but  looks  more  healthful.  A  Jer- 
sey steamboat  carrying  passengers  to  church  in  New^ 
York,  for  it  is  Sunday  morning,  takes  them  in  tow. 
"At  ten  we  gladly  spring  on  shore,  and  I  once  more 
tread  optato  gremio  te/luris.^^^^° 

One  other  incident  occurring  in  Alexandria  in  Jan- 
uary, 1826  or  1827,  is  recorded  in  a  letter  probably 
written  to  Dr.  James  Flint.  It  is  given  because  it 
shows  the  things  which  most  impressed  Mr.  Flint,  and 
because  of  its  inherent  interest.  He  was  taking  his 
usual  m.orning  walk  on  a  marshy  forest  road -a  walk 
so  dreary  that  it  had  become  the  subject  of  frequent 

SOS  plint.     Recollections,   390. 

309  Jf'estern  Monthly  Review,  vol.  i,  320,  321. 

"^^  —  Idem,  322. 


A  NEW  LEASE  OF  LIFE  183 

jest  among  his  friends.  He  gives  us  one  of  his  most 
perfect  pictures  of  the  morning  scenes  and  sounds. 
Into  this  picture,  amidst  which  he  walks  thinking  of 
the  distant  friend  of  his  youth,  comes  the  wail  of  a 
woman.  Coming  along  the  road  are  a  couple  of  In- 
dian women  and  two  or  three  children  following  in  the 
customary  Indian  file,  a  cart  upon  which  is  a  rude 
cypress  coffin.  Preceding  it  is  an  aged  Indian  man. 
Sympathy  in  the  face  and  words  of  this  tender  hearted 
man,  stops  the  procession.  The  aged  father  answers 
in  his  broken  French:  "c'etoit  mon  seul  fils-c'etoit 
grand  et  brave.  Mais  il  est  parti,  et  nous  partons.'^ 
He  had  heard  a  father's  "funeral  oration  for  his  son," 
and  he  went  on  his  way,  the  wails  of  the  widow  dying 
in  the  distance,  meditating  upon  how  "death  deals  his 
dart,  and  tears  fall ;  and  hearts  are  as  deeply  desolated 
in  the  wild  woods,  as  when  the  tenant  of  a  palace 
falls.'"" 


211  Western  Monthly  Revievj,  71-73.     Extract  from  a  letter. 


XII.  LITERARY  WORK  IN  CINCINNATI 

After  twelve  years  spent  in  the  great  west,  and  in 
the  early  part  of  1827,  Mr.  Flint  was  able  to  carry 
out  the  object  which  he  had  more  especially  in  view 
when  he  was  first  planning  to  go  west.  This  was  the 
plan,  of  which  he  wrote  to  the  Missionary  Society  of 
Connecticut,  to  establish,  "in  some  central  place  a 
religious  publication,  like  our  religious  monthly  pa- 
pers ;  except  that  it  should  more  particularly  vindicate 
our  literature,  charities  and  institutions."^'"  The 
''central  place"  was  Cincinnati.  The  publication 
was  the  Western  Monthly  Review.  The  object  of 
the  Review,  as  set  forth  in  the  editor's  inaugural  ad- 
dress, holds  closely  to  that  which  was  first  in  mind. 

Mr.  Flint  probably  moved  to  Cincinnati  about  the 
time  that  his  Western  Monthly  Review  was  first  is- 
sued, May,  1827."''  Cincinnati  was  chosen  for  the 
new  residence  because  it  ofifered  a  central  location 
for  his  business,  because  there  were  friends  and  ac- 
quaintances there,  and  especially  because  of  its  cli- 

312  Letter  of  Timothy  Flint,  Lunenburg,  July  23,  1815. 

313  Mr.  Venable  in  his  Beginnings  of  Literary  Culture  in  the  Ohio  Valley 
[348]  says  the  family  joined  Mr.  Flint  in  the  fall  of  1825.  This  is  a  mistake 
that  might  have  been  avoided  by  a  more  careful  reading  of  the  Revieiv. 
On  the  other  hand,  Doctor  Flint  in  the  Americana  article  says  Flint  did  not 
move  to  Cincinnati  until  the  fall  of  1828.  This  is  too  late  by  a  year  and  a 
half.  Mr.  Flint  declares  in  his  opening  article.  Review,  May,  1827,  that 
for  himself  and  his  children  his  first  ties  and  duties  are  in  Cincinnati.  E. 
H.  Flint  had  opened  his  book  store  in  that  city  as  early  as  June,  1827. 


i86  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

matic  advantages,  being  somewhat  mid-way  between 
the  north  and  the  south. 

The  family  circumstances  must  have  been  quite 
comfortable  by  this  time.  We  hear  nothing  more  of 
private  schools  and  Mr.  Flint  had  ceased  to  preach 
regularly.  Then  too,  the  business  enterprises  under- 
taken involved  the  investment  of  considerable  capital. 
In  addition  to  the  magazine,  a  retail  book  store  was 
opened,  and  in  connection  was  a  publishing  and  whole- 
sale business.  The  second  son,  E.  H.  Flint,  "Hub- 
bard" the  family  always  called  him,  was  in  charge  of 
the  business  which  was  continued  as  late  as  1833,  about 
the  time  that  Hubbard  went  south  with  his  father's 
family.  The  Review  and  many  of  Mr.  Flint's  books 
were  published  by  his  son.  There  are  also  occasional 
reprints  from  his  press.^" 

The  very  cordial  reception  given  by  the  public  to 
Mr.  Flint's  first  two  books,  the  Recollections  and 
Frajicis  Berrian,  w^as  a  strong  inducement  for  him  to 
venture  wholly  upon  the  field  of  literature.  In  his 
"Editor's  Address"  while  he  is  quite  sensitive  to  the 
criticisms  of  his  own  and  his  son  Micah's  books,  yet 
he  is  evidently  much  pleased  with  the  wide  reading 
which  has  been  given  them. 

In  this  inaugural  address,  Mr.  Flint  gives  several 
reasons  for  establishing  such  a  review^  as  he  proposed. 

We  are  physically,  and  from  our  peculiar  modes  or  existence, 
a  scribbling  and  forth-putting  people.  .  .  At  the  census  of 
1830  the  Mississippi  valley  will  contain  more  than  four  millions 
of  inhabitants.     .     .     Little,  as  they  have  dreamed  of  the  fact 

314  Charles  Lowell,  "Trinitarian  Controversy"  in  fVestern  Monthly  Re- 
view, vol.  iii,  109. 


LITERARY  WORK  IN  CINCINNATI  187 

in  the  Atlantic  country,  we  have  our  thousand  orators  and  poets. 
We  have  not  a  solitary  journal  expressly  constituted  to  be  the 
echo  of  public  literary  opinion.  The  teeming  mind  wastes  its 
sweetness  on  the  desert  air.  The  exhausted  author,  after  the 
pains  of  parturition,  is  obliged  to  drop  the  dear  offspring  of  his 
brain  into  the  immense  abyss  of  a  public,  that  has  little  charity 
for  any  bantlings,  that  do  not  bring  money  into  their  hands,  and 
"Where  it  is  gone  and  how  it  fares 
Nobody  knows  and  nobody  cares." 

To  foster  polite  literature  in  the  west,  was  then  the* 
first  object  named.^'"* 

This  particular  object,  Mr.  Flint  felt,  was  of  much 
importance  because,  he  says :  ",  .  .  one,  who  has 
not  seen  can  not  know,  with  what  a  curl  of  the  lip,  and 
crook  of  the  nose  an  Atlantic  reviewer  contemplates 
the  idea  of  a  work  written  west  of  the  Alleghany 
mountains." 

He  proposed  to  be  gentle  and  generous  with  every 
aspiring  writer.  His  "function"  as  well  as  his  motto 
was,  Benedicere^  hand  Maledicere.^^'^  It  seems  fair 
also  to  say  that  this  was  his  practice.  The  only  time 
when  he  might  be  fairly  charged  with  breaking  over 
his  rule  was  on  some  rare  occasions  when  he  met  the 
furious  sectarian  or  the  fawning  politician. 

There  were  enemies,  however,  against  whom  he 
proposed  to  join  forces  even  with  "them  of  the  bloody 
flag." 

'  Show  us  an  author  who  advances  an  irreligious,  or  an  im- 

moral sentiment,  an  opinion  that  has  a  clear  tendency  to  confound 
the  unchangeable  distinctions  of  right  and  wrong,  unhinge  prin- 
ciple, and  overturn  the  social  foundations,  and  we  will  do  our 

31^  fVestern  Monthly  Revie<w,  vol.  i,  9. 
2^^ —  Idem,  10,  II,  16. 


i88  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

best  to  paddle  our  skiff  into  the  line  of  battle,  and  will  fight  with 
as  hearty  good  will  to  the  cause,  as  the  best  of  them.^" 

He  had  still  another  object  in  view.  He  believed 
there  was  very  little  fairness  in  the  world  of  review- 
ers. He  thought  that  for  the  most  part  their  "censure 
was  malignant,"  and  their  praise  ''nauseous,"  while 
their  motto  was  "Lay  it  on  thick.  Some  will  stick." 
Mr.  Flint  proposed  for  himself  a  new  standard  in 
this  field.^'^ 

Besides  the  magazine,  three  other  works  were 
issued  within  the  first  year  of  the  Cincinnati  residence. 
There  was  first  the  Geography  and  History,  copy- 
righted in  October,  1827,  then  George  Masoti,  and 
Arthur  Clenning  a  few  months  later.  Mr.  Flint  was 
now  fully  launched  on  his  literary  career.  During 
the  next  five  or  six  years,  with  occasional  interrup- 
tions from  forced  journeys  to  New  England  in  sum- 
mer and  to  Louisiana  in  the  winter,  usually  on  account 
of  ill  health,  this  stream  of  literary  productions  was 
continuous.  The  Review  never  more  than  paid  ex- 
penses, and  suffered  several  minor  changes  in  its  plans. 
The  first  volume  has  considerable  poetry,  most  of  it 
Micah's.  The  next  volume  has  less  and  the  last  one 
almost  none  at  all.  As  the  poetry  diminished,  the 
translations  from  the  French  increased  until  they  oc- 
cupied a  large  part  of  the  space  in  the  last  numbers. 
In  June,  1830,  he  announced  that  the  Review  would 
be  discontinued  as  then  published,  and  that  a  quar- 
terly in  two  annual  volumes  would  be  issued.  Each 
volume  was  to  contain  at  least  five  hundred  pages,  and 
it  was  to  be  more  scientific  than  the  previous  work. 
The  advertisement  seemed  to  leave  the  future  some- 

^^"^  JVestern  Monthly  Rev.,  vol.  I,  14,  ^la —  Idem,  16,  17. 


LITERARY  WORK  IN  CINCINNATI  189 

what  dubious,  and  dependant  upon  the  response  of 
the  public.  At  any  rate  we  hear  no  more  of  the 
Western  Monthly  Review  or  any  successor  to  it  con- 
ducted by  Mr.  Flint.  It  might  seem  that  the  chief 
weakness  of  the  Review  was  that  it  was  too  ideal  and 
too  far  in  advance  of  its  constituency. 

Mr.  Flint  was  engaged  in  several  varieties  of  liter- 
ary work.  One  of  his  best  short  stories,  "Oolemba" 
was  published  in  Judge  James  Hall's  Western  Souve- 
nir for  1829.  He  wrote  several  articles  for  the 
Knickerbocker  soon  after  it  began  in  1832.  These 
were  on  Phrenology,  Education,  and  Literature 
and  were  published  in  volume  two.  He  wrote 
for  other  magazines  and  annuals.  In  1831  he  edited 
the  Personal  Narratives  of  James  O.  Pattie.  Pattie 
was  an  unfortunate  young  man  who  had  spent  six 
years  wandering  in  the  far  southwest,  and  the  Spanish 
country.  He  suffered  great  hardships,  left  his  father 
and  companions  dead  in  the  far  country  and  returned 
home  broken  and  helpless.  Senator  Johnson  of 
Louisiana  had  befriended  him,  and  given  him  a  letter 
to  Mr.  Flint  when  he  returned  to  his  home  in  Ken- 
tucky. Flint  made  it  possible  for  him  to  publish  his 
adventures,  furnishing  some  material  for  his  book,  as 
well  as  putting  it  into  shape  for  the  publisher.^^^ 

One  of  the  earliest  and  keenest  interests  of  Mr.  Flint 
in  the  section  where  he  began  his  literary  work,  was 
the  experiment  of   Robert  Owen,""   a    remarkable 

"1"  See  R.  G.  Thwaites's  Early  JVestern  Travels,  vol.  xvii!. 

"-°  Born  at  Newton,  Montgomeryshire,  Scotland,  1771,  died  1858.  See 
article  in  Dictionary  of  National  Biography  (New  York,  1895).  Also  his 
Liff  written  by  himself,  1857,  1858,  2  vols. 

For  Owen's  ideas  on  socialism  and  communism,  see  Documentary  History 
of  American  Industrial  Society  (Cleveland,  1910),  vol.  vii,  chap.  ii. 


190  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

character  who  had  founded  a  colony  at  New  Har- 
mony, Indiana.  This  was  a  sort  of  "Brook  Farm" 
community,  although  it  did  not  have  so  many  cranks 
in  it.  The  founder  kept  the  control  of  affairs  largely 
in  his  own  hands,  and  when  things  did  not  go  to  suit 
him,  or  when  he  grew  tired  of  his  hobby,  he  closed  up 
the  business  and  went  back  to  Scotland. 

Owen  was  a  rich  manufacturer  whose  home,  when 
he  chose  to  be  limited  to  one  little  spot  on  the  earth, 
was  in  New  Lanark,  Scotland.  He  was  a  globe  trot- 
ter of  an  unusual  type  for  that  day.  His  wealth  en- 
abled him  to  indulge  successive  hobbies,  one  of  which 
was  the  founding  of  an  ideal  community.  He  pub- 
lished pamphlets  and  used  every  kind  of  means  to  get 
his  visionary  scheme  before  the  world.  He  laid 
down  ''twelve  fundamental  laws,  nine  conditions  of 
happiness  and  twenty-eight  universal  laws,"  which  he 
thought  were  all  that  were  necessary  to  bring  in  the 
millenium.  He  had  no  use  for  the  Christian  or  any 
other  revealed  religion.  Mr.  Flint  found  much  to 
admire  about  the  character  of  the  man,  but  he  had  no 
faith  in  his  social  theories  and  no  excuse  for  his  hos- 
tility to  religion. 
\  In  1828,  Mr.  Owen  challenged  the  ministry  of  the 
country  to  meet  him  in  debate  upon  the  subject  of 
religion.  Reverend  Alexander  Campbell  of  Beth- 
any, West  Virginia,  a  leader  among  the  dissenting 
and  liberal  elements  breaking  away  from  the  Calvin- 
istic  Presbyterians  and  Baptists,  and  founder  of  the 
sect  which  was  to  become  the  "Christians"  or  "Dis- 
ciples," accepted  the  challenge.  The  debate  was 
arranged  to  take  place  in  Cincinnati,  in  April,  1829, 


LITERARY  WORK  IN  CINCINNATI  191 

one  year  from  date  of  agreement.  Then  Mr.  Owen 
started  on  one  of  his  globe  trotting  trips,^'^  visiting  his 
home,  several  places  in  Europe,  the  West  Indies, 
Mexico,  and  the  United  States,  engaged  the  while  in 
propagating  the  gospel  of  his  new  social  system.  He 
was  one  of  those  men,  Mr.  Flint  says,  who  always  had 
the  best  of  every  person  he  met  in  argument,  at  least  in 
his  own  mind.  When  he  left  them  they  were  always 
counted  as  converts  to  the  new  faith. 

Owen  arrived  in  Cincinnati  in  time  for  the  debate, 
with  a  day  or  two  to  spare.  The  affair  had  been 
widely  advertised,  and  caused  intense  interest.  It 
continued  through  eight  days.  Mr.  Flint  sat  on  the 
platform  of  the  Methodist  church  building  where  the 
debate  was  held,  the  much  larger  Presbyterian  build- 
ing being  refused  for  the  purpose,  and  was  enabled  to 
make  a  careful  study  of  the  people  and  debaters. 
There  was  so  much  of  human  nature  evident  on  this 
occasion  that  Mr.  Flint  was  intensely  interested  in  it. 
He  gives  a  very  full  report  of  the  debate  and  extensive 
reviews  of  the  reports  which  were  published  later. 
He  thought  Mr.  Owen  had  winded  himself  after  the 
first  day,  and  could  do  nothing  but  repeat,  each  time 
his  turn  came,  the  platitudes  of  his  system.  Indeed, 
Mr.  Flint  thought  that  Owen's  chief  purpose  in  the 
debate  was  to  advertise  his  social  hobby.  Owen  was 
quick  at  retort  and  had  somewhat  the  advantage  of 
Campbell  at  this  point,  but  it  did  not  serve  to  put  him 
on  an  equality  with  his  antagonist. 

Mr.  Flint  was  greatly  interested  in  what  he  saw  and 
heard  of  Alexander  Campbell.     He  seemed  an  inter- 

222  For  an  interesting  comment  on  Owen's  travels  see  Revieiv,  vol.  iii,  145. 


192  TIMOTHY    FLINT 


esting  combination  of  "Scotch  shrewdness  and  Ken- 
tucky hard  fight."  He  was  unfavorably  impressed 
with  Mr.  Campbell's  nasal  twang,  though  otherwise 
he  had  a  good  voice,  with  his  many  provincialisms 
and  his  almost  flippant  way  of  using  the  sacred  names. 
He  could  not  agree  with  his  underlying  naturalistic 
philosophy,  and  did  not  like  his  severely  logical  way 
of  building  up  his  religious  system.  But  all  these 
were  minor  matters.  Campbell  was  self  possessed, 
quick  of  apprehension  and  at  retort -if  not  the  equal 
of  Owen  in  this  respect,  he  was  a  skilled  controversial- 
ist, and  had  at  his  command  an  amazing  amount  of 
reading  of  everything  which  could  bear  upon  his 
subject,  both  ancient  and  modern. 

The  liberality  of  his  theological  views  was  the  one 
thing  that  specially  attracted  Mr.  Flint  in  this  wes- 
tern theologian.  He  was  greatly  surprised  to  find  it. 
His  remark  is,  concerning  Campbell's  views  of  Chris- 
tianity: "They  are  decidedly  of  the  liberal  cast." 
This  discovery,  by  a  man  so  nearly  related  to  the  New 
England  Unitarians,  as  Mr.  Flint  was,  of  a  similarity 
between  his  own  and  Mr.  Campbell's  views,  is  one 
indication  of  a  parallelism  between  New  England 
Unitarians  and  western  "Campbellites"  that  has  re- 
ceived little  or  no  attention  from  later  historians. 
However  it  was  common  at  an  earlier  date,  to  charge 
this  body  with  Unitarianism. 

Mr.  Flint  hoped  that  the  result  of  this  debate  would 
be: 

.  That  the  empire  of  bigotry  in  this  quarter  v.ill 
be  shaken  to  its  center;  that  the  two  extremes  of  Calvinism 
and  Atheism  will  be  alike  rejected  by  the  sober  good  sense  of 
the  people,  and  that  the  intellectual  pendulum  will  settle  in 


LITERARY  WORK  IN  CINCINNATI  193 

its  vibrations  to  the  permanent  point  of  reasonable  and  liberal 
Christianity.^-' 

Mr.  Flint's  concluding  remarks  on  the  Owen- 
Campbell  debate  let  us  into  the  strained  relations  be- 
tween him  and  the  orthodox  Calvinists.  It  was  an 
impossible  thing  that  a  rigid  Calvinist  like  Reverend 
Dr.  Joshua  L.  Wilson,  pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church  in  Cincinnati  from  1808  until  1846,  should 
have  confidence  in  the  theological  views  of  a  man  like 
Flint.  Doctor  Wilson  was  the  man  who,  a  few  years 
later,  was  to  accuse  Lyman  Beecher- fresh  as  he  was 
from  combating  Boston  Unitarians  -  and  to  bring  him 
to  trial  for  heresv.  This  too,  in  Mr.  Beecher's  own 
church,  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church  of  Cincin- 
nati.''* 

Soon  after  Mr.  Flint  came  to  Cincinnati,  the  ortho- 
dox party  had  started  a  weekly  paper  called  the  Pan- 
dect. Doctor  Wilson  was  one  of  the  editors.  In  the 
first  number  of  the  paper  Mr.  Flint's  religious  posi- 
tion was  attacked.  The  attack  would  seem  to  have 
been  very  rabid,  so  much  so  that  Flint  did  not  deign 
to  notice  it.  Later,  December  30,  1828,  the  same 
paper  made  what  Mr.  Flint  called  a  milder  assault, 
and  he  replied  to  it.^'^ 

One  of  the  charges  made  against  Mr.  Flint  by  the 
Pandect  was  that  "being  a  professed  minister  of  the 
gospel"  his  position  was  so  much  the  worse.     Flint 

323  ff/estern  Mont/sly  Revieiu,  vol.  li,  647.  On  Owen,  see  Revieiv,  vol. 
i,  105-118,  ii,  197-201,  639-647,  iii,  91-100,  133-145.  427-439-  On  Alexander 
Campbell  see  four  of  the  last  named  of  the  above  articles  and  Revieiv,  vol. 
ii,  660. 

3-*  See  Henry  A.  and  Kate  B.  Ford's  History  of  Cincbuiati,  Ohio,  150, 
151.  See  also  W.  B.  Spragiie's  Annals  of  the  American  Presbyterian  Pulpit, 
vol.  ii,  308-318. 

325  ff/estern  Monthly  Reiiew,  vol.  ii,  460-462. 


194  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

held  to  the  early  New  England  idea  of  the  minis- 
try-that  a  minister  was  only  such  so  long  as  he  con- 
tinued to  perform  the  office  for  which  he  was  or- 
dained. 

The  claim  of  any  peculiar  and  inherent  rights  and  dignities, 
of  being  once  a  minister  and  always  a  minister,  are  at  least  as 
contrary  to  scripture,  reason  and  common  sense,  as  they  are  to  the 
whole  spirit  of  our  institutions.  Piety  is  a  real  thing;  but  the  red 
stockings  of  a  cardinal  can  be  put  on  or  off.'^" 

When  he  began  his  literary  work  he  had  been  care- 
ful to  say  that  he  only  left  the  sacred  office  because  he 
had  long  been  unable  to  fulfill  its  duties,  and  that  he 
would  rather  be  accused  of  any  other  motive  than  lack 
of  reverence  for  the  holy  calling,  as  the  cause  of  his 
leaving  it.^"'  So  far  did  Mr.  Flint  go  in  this  notion 
of  his  being  no  longer  a  minister,  that  he  even  flattered 
himself  that  he  did  not  look  like  a  minister,  and  he 
,,  certainly  did  not  afifect  the  clerical  dress. ^'^ 

Mr.  Flint  will  not  be  behind  the  editors  of  the 
Pandect  in  reverence  for  the  Scriptures,  though  he 
can  not  interpret  them  as  they  do.  He  thinks,  that  to 
take  a  naked  proposition  from  the  Bible,  and  make  it 
stand  as  a  simple  categorical  assertion,  is  a  method 
which  makes  "a  horrid  jargon  of  contradictions"  of 
this  "divine  and  much  injured  book."  But  the  main 
point  of  the  charge  against  Mr.  Flint  seems  to  have 
been  that  he  did  not  accept  the  orthodox  statement 
concerning  the  Trinity.  This  he  admits,  and  he  gives 
some  of  the  reasons  for  his  position.^"^ 

We  are  not  surprised  to  learn  that  Mr.  Flint  is  lead- 

326  if^estern  Monthly  Revieiu,  vol.  ii,  594. 
2^^ —  Idem,  vol.  i,  19. 
3-^ —  Idetn,  vol.  iii,  288,  lines  34-37. 
^2^  —  Idem,  vol.  ii,  460-462. 


LITERARY  WORK  IN  CINCINNATI  195 

ing,  a  few  months  after  the  above  incident,  in  a  move- 
ment to  form  the  "First  Congregational  Church"  in 
Cincinnati.  This  society  held  its  first  meetings  in 
1829,  obtained  a  charter  in  1830,  and  dedicated  a 
building  the  twenty-third  of  May  in  that  year.  Tim- 
othy Flint's  name  heads  the  list  of  the  signers  to  the 
form  of  union.  In  the  same  list  are  the  names  of  Abi- 
gail Flint  and  Emeline  H.  Flint,  the  wife  and 
daughter.  M  r.  Flint  wrote  a  hymn  for  the  dedication 
exercises,  and  his  name  was  placed  upon  a  bronze 
metal  tablet  in  the  church  a  few  years  later  together 
with  those  of  the  founders  of  the  church.''"  In  i860 
there  were  "liberal"  and  "conservative"  wings  in  this 
church,  contending  in  the  courts  over  the  property. 
It  was  then  developed  that,  while  the  church  had  al- 
ways been  known  as  a  Unitarian  church,  it  had  not 
been  called  such  at  its  founding  because  07ie  of  the 
leaders  had  objected  to  the  name  "Unitarian."  I 
think  we  hazard  none  of  the  facts  in  the  case  when  we 
say  that  the  "one"  was  Timothy  Flint.  To  any  one 
acquainted  with  the  theological  disputes  and  parties 
of  the  day  there  is  much  of  significance  in  this  posi- 
tion of  Mr.  Flint.  He  proposed  to  establish  a  church 
in  Cincinnati  such  as  he  believed  was  like  those  of  the 
fathers  in  New  England.  He  would  not  admit  a  sec- 
tarian name  or  creed. ''^ 

In  the  summer  of  1828,  Mr.  Flint  made  a  trip  to 
New  England.     The  experiences  of  the  journey  are 

^3*^  Letter  of  George  A.  Thayer,  Cincinnati,  Jan.  4,  1908,  reporting  sev- 
eral items  from  the  records  of  the  First  Congregational  Church,  Cincinnati, 
in  the  Unitarian  Library,  Boston. 

"^1 — ■  Idem.  Also  Ford's  History  of  Cincinnati,  164,  165;  and  The 
Unitarian  Church  Case  —  Remarks  of  R.  M.  Corwine  and  the  Opinion  of 
Judge  Collins  (Cincinnati,  i860). 


196  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

fully  recorded  in  a  letter  to  Dr.  James  Flint,  printed 
in  the  Review.^^'  This  journey  was  begun  on  the 
eleventh  of  July  and  he  returned  in  September.  He 
had  three  stage  companions  for  a  part  of  the  journey 
from  Wheeling  to  Baltimore:  Mr.  Robert  Owen;  a 
rigidly  orthodox  Scotch  lawyer;  and  a  woman  de- 
voted to  the  Episcopal  faith.  There  was  "no  want  of 
disputation  and  logomachy."  The  lady  and  the  law- 
yer could  not  tolerate  the  infidel  and  soon  left  him  to 
Mr.  Flint.  Owen  thought  religion  of  every  kind  had 
been  the  enemy  of  the  race.  Man,  he  said,  was  en- 
tirely the  victim  of  circumstances,  yet  he  proposed  to 
save  him  by  changing  these  same  masterful  circum- 
stances. He  seemed  to  be  purely  materialistic.  He 
was  tolerant  and  gentlemanly  toward  those  who  op- 
posed him,  but  patronizing.  It  was  this  trait  that  had 
so  sorely  tried  the  lawyer  and  their  female  compan- 
ion. It  does  not  seem  to  have  concerned  Mr.  Flint,  or 
perhaps  Owen  did  not  find  it  expedient  to  patronize 
him.  This  was  a  liberty  that  few  ever  ventured  upon 
with  him.  Flint  says  their  argument  had  "one  fea- 
ture at  least  worthy  of  praise.  It  was  marked  neither 
with  boisterousness  nor  temper."  Flint's  conclusion 
about  Owen  upon  this  occasion  is  that  he  was  a  mild, 
humane,  and  polished  gentleman,  a  man  of  great  nat- 
ural shrewdness  who  had  seen  much,  "with  eyes  keen- 
ly attentive  to  what  he  had  seen."  ^^^ 

He  entered  Washington  at  night.  Like  a  French 
town,  it  appeared  best  in  the  moonlight.  He  thought 
it  was  an  index  of  the  country,  a  prophecy  of  what  was 

^3-  IVestern  Monthly  Re-vieix:,  vol.  ii,  193-209,  249-263. 
2'^ —  Idem,  i97-20t. 


LITERARY  WORK  IN  CINCINNATI  197 

to  be  rather  than  a  finished  plan.  It  was  a  city  of 
villages,  cow  pastures,  and  corn  fields.  It  was  more 
favorable  than  the  sights  and  sounds  of  a  city,  as  a 
place  in  which  the  greenhorn  Solomons  from  the 
country  might  expand  their  thoughts,  ripen  their  con- 
ceptions, and  bring  forth  many  a  sublime  invention 
for  the  good  of  the  nation.  Mr.  Flint  judged  that 
there  was  enough  money  lost  in  a  single  day  of  extra 
and  worse  than  useless  spouting,  than  would  be  suffi- 
cient, to  make  the  grounds  more  in  keeping  with  the 
country's  expectations  from  the  metropolis.  These 
grounds  were  very  trying  to  him.  They  were  unen- 
closed, covered  with  blueberry  swamps  and  clumps  of 
bushes,  and  cut  up  into  yellow  clay  roads.  Where 
there  might  have  been  grass,  it  was  ''gnawed  up  by  the 
roots  by  hungry  cows."  ^^* 

The  morning  after  his  arrival  in  Washington,  he 
wandered  about  the  buildings,  from  which  the  legis- 
lators had  all  departed  and  where  no  ''contracts  of 
scratch  and  tickle  were  making."  The  Indian  fig- 
ures in  the  panels  seemed  to  him  copied  from  the  to- 
bacco store  tribe  rather  than  "the  real  forest  walkers." 
The  patent  office  excited  curious  interest  and  shrewd 
comment.  There  were  some  "fifteen  hundred  or  two 
thousand  projects  to  triumph  over  gravity  and  friction, 
time  and  space,  height  and  depth,  and  to  make  for- 
tunes, by  catching  dame  nature  napping  in  some  of 
her  most  fixed  purposes."  But  the  head  itself,  when 
wound  up  by  desire  for  money  and  fame,  seemed  to 
Mr.  Flint,  the  "most  versatile  and  rapid  engine." ^^^ 

*^*  IVestern  Monthly  Reviezv,  vol.  ii,  203-206. 
3~^  —  Idem,  202-207. 


198  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

Mr.  Flint  returned  home  over  a  new  route,  up  the 
Hudson  and  by  way  of  the  Erie  Canal.  This  was  a 
ten  or  t\velve  day  trip  at  that  time.  It  seemed  a  very 
easy  and  speedy  means  of  traveling  compared  with  his 
first  journey  west  in  1815.  The  canal  seemed  to  him  a 
herculean  achievement  for  a  country  in  the  dawn  of 
its  career.  Many  incidents  of  canalboat  travel  are 
told,  as  it  w^as  then  a  novel  experience.  He  marveled 
at  what  he  saw^  of  growth  in  such  cities  as  Rochester 
and  Buffalo,  places  recently  sprung  up  in  the  forests, 
but  already  boasting  of  city  ways  and  comforts.^^" 

He  arrived  at  Niagara  Falls  at  half  past  one  at 
night.  Instead  of  going  to  bed  as  his  fellow  passen- 
gers did,  he  spent  the  remainder  of  the  clear  moon-lit 
night,  viewing  the  falls,  a  spectacle  which  it  had  been 
almost  the  first  remembered  w^ish  of  his  heart  to  see. 
He  saw  it  "in  a  temperament,  at  a  time  and  under  cir- 
cumstances just  such,"  as  he  would  have  chosen.  He 
does  not  attempt  any  extended  description  of  the  falls 
but  refers  to  that  w^hich  he  had  w  ritten  earlier  for  the 
Geography  and  History,^^'  and  before  he  had  seen 
them.  He  had  dreamed  about  the  falls  so  often  that 
the  reality  was  somewhat  disappointing.  The  inter- 
est in  foUow^ing  Mr.  Flint  to  the  falls,  is  not  in  his  de- 
scription of  them,  but  in  his  unconscious  revealing  of 
himself  in  this  experience  which  opened  for  him  a 
new  chapter  in  the  volume  of  truth,  new  powers  in  his 
own  soul,  and  a  new  appreciation  of  the  Eternal.  He 
says: 

He  must  have  been  obtuse  of  brain  and  of  heart  who  could 

336  jfestern  Monthly  Re-viezi',  vol.  ii,  250-255. 
^^^  See  vol.  ii,  428,  429. 


LITERARY  WORK  IN  CINCINNATI  199 

have  thus  contemplated  this  spectacle  alone  in  this  repose  of 
nature,  under  the  light  of  the  moon,  and  the  blue  stars  twinkling 
in  the  cloudless  dome  of  the  firmament,  and  not  have  thoughts, 
w^hich  the  poverty  of  language  can  never  clothe  in  words. 

Mr.  Flint  was  not  one  of  the  "obtuse  of  brain  and 
heart,"  neither  did  he  sufifer  from  a  poverty  of  words, 
but  he  is  too  true  an  artist  to  attempt  a  description  of 
this  deep  experience  of  the  soul.  He  was  content  to 
impress  the  picture  on  his  own  memory,  so  that  ever 
afterwards,  "with  a  little  fixedness  of  attention,"  he 
might  repaint  the  magnificent  vision  for  his  own  con- 
templation.^^^ 

On  the  eighth  of  August,  1829,  Mr.  Flint  began  an- 
other journey  to  New  England.  This,  like  the  for- 
mer is  reported  in  a  letter  to  Dr.  James  Flint.^^^  On 
the  steamer  up  the  Ohio  from  Cincinnati,  one  of  his 
companions  was  a  clergyman  who  knew  Mr.  Flint 
only  by  reputation.  Neither  of  them  had  any  interest 
in  the  universal  amusement,  cards,  and  naturally 
began  to  "confabulate."  Mr.  Flint  says  of  this  "con- 
fabulation": 

In  discussing  matters  and  things  in  our  city,  I  soon  became, 
as  I  had  foreseen  would  happen,  the  theme  of  his  remarks.  The 
uncertainty  of  the  light  made  me  able  to  command  my  counte- 
nance beyond  the  fear  of  betrayal.  In  a  conversation  of  a  good 
long  hour  "by  the  Worcester  clock,"  I  had  the  advantage  of  my 
good  natured  friend,  of  hearing  my  posthumous  and  historical 
valuation  addressed  to  the  conscious  and  concrete  flesh  and  blood, 
as  though  it  had  been  an  abstract  thing  without  parts,  or  passions. 
Woe  is  me !  May  our  friends  annoint  us,  while  we  live,  with  their 
most  bland  and  precious  oil ;  for  on  our  cold  stone  such  rencoun- 
ters teach  us  we  may  expect  little  but  the  true  caustic  acid.     The 

338  ff'gstern  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  ii,  255-260. 
^^^  —  Idem,  vol.  ii,  284-295. 


200  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

gentleman  was  a  zealous  religionist,  regarding  my  views  of  re- 
ligion, as  heretical ;  and  you  may  imagine  what  kind  of  a  portrait 
I  obtained  from  this  patient  and  protracted  sitting.  But  we  of 
the  West,  who  have  seen  alligators,  felt  blisters,  and  tasted  calo- 
mel, learn  not  to  make  wry  faces  at  swallowing  a  bitter  potion. 
Nevertheless,  when  I  informed  him,  that  I  was  the  gentle- 
man, whom  he  had  condescended  to  discuss,  I  would  have  pre- 
ferred, for  the  moment,  to  have  been  the  subject,  rather  than  the 
painter,'^" 

In  January  of  1 832,  Mr.  Flint  was  compelled  by  the 
unusual  severit}-^  of  the  winter,  and  the  orders  of  his 
physician,  to  go  to  the  south  for  his  health.  One  result 
of  this  journey  is  a  story,  the  materials  for  which  he 
gathered  from  the  conversation  and  story  telling  on 
the  boat.  The  story  is,  "The  First  Steamboat  on  the 
La  Plata;  or,  the  Monogamist."^" 

During  his  residence  in  Cincinnati  Mr.  Flint  was 
honored  by  the  citizens  of  the  city  in  several  ways. 
One  of  the  considerations  shown  him  was  giving  to 
him,  together  with  Reverend  Mr.  Pierpont,  a  place  in 
the  then  locally  famous  picture  of  Lafayette's  Land- 
ing and  Reception  at  Cincinnati,  by  the  French  artist 
Hervieu.  Neither  Mr.  Pierpont  nor  Mr.  Flint  had 
been  present  upon  the  occasion  of  the  "Landing"  but 
they  were  nevertheless  placed  among  the  prominent 
citizens  gathered  at  that  time.'" 

Itwas  early  in  the  period  of  his  Cincinnati  residence 
that  Mr.  Flint  received  another  honor  and  a  recogni- 
tion of  his  ability  as  a  historical  writer.  On  October 
30,  1828,  his  name  w^as  proposed  to  the  Massachusetts 

3^0  JVestern  Monthly  Revieiv,   vol.   ii,  285. 

^^''^  Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  321-340,  433-450.  See  especially  the  introduc- 
tion, 321. 

2*-  Jf'estern  Monthly  Review,  vol.  iii,  440-447.     This  picture  has  been  lost. 


LITERARY  WORK  IN  CINCINNATI  201 

Historical  Society  as  a  corresponding  member  and  he 
was  elected  as  such  January  28,  1829."^ 

The  materials  for  following  Mr.  Flint  in  any  other 
of  his  travels,  until  the  summer  of  1833  when  he  vis- 
ited New  England  again,  are  lacking.  For  the  last 
two  or  three  years  of  the  Cincinnati  residence,  there  is 
very  little  that  relates  to  the  daily  affairs  of  Mr.  Flint 
or  of  his  family.  Several  books  came  from  his  pen 
during  this  time,  and  indicate  that  he  was  able  for 
much  work,  and  quite  as  busy  as  during  the  first  half 
of  his  six  and  a  half  years  in  the  city. 


^*3  Massachusetts    Historical    Society,    Proceedings,    first   series,    vol.    i, 
416,  418. 


XIII.     NEW  ENGLAND  AND  NEW  YORK 

Mr.  Flint  was  absent  from  New  England  for  ten 
years  at  the  time  he  first  went  west.  After  1825,  he 
made  a  number  of  visits  of  which  we  know,  to  that 
section  up  to  the  time  of  his  death  in  1840.  This  inti- 
mate view  of  New  England,  by  one  so  loyal  and  keen 
as  Mr.  Flint,  and  by  one  who  could  see  it  with  other 
eye  than  that  of  the  native  and  the  partaker  in  the  pass- 
ing events,  furnishes  a  suggestive  study  of  a  very  im- 
portant period  in  the  history  of  New  England.  He 
saw  with  great  concern,  the  breaking  up  of  the  simple 
agricultural  and  village  society  by  industrial  changes ; 
the  passing  of  the  old  orthodoxy,  and  the  rule  of  the 
state  church  and  ministry.  These  things  which  had 
been  the  marked  characteristics  of  New  England  and 
peculiarly  of  Massachusetts,  he  had  known  and  loved 
in  his  youth.  He  was  not  a  man  to  hold  tenaciously 
to  the  past  but  he  looked  on  the  changes  and  the  future 
with  an  anxious  and  solicitous  eye,  knowing  better 
than  most  of  his  contemporaries,  what  these  things 
meant. 

During  his  first  visit,  he  was  struck  with  the  number 
of  large  new  buildings  throughout  eastern  New  Eng- 
land. Connecting  them  with  the  asperity  and  ear- 
nestness of  the  religious  investigations  then  so  com- 
mon, he  might  have  judged  he  says,  that  these  new 
buildings  were  the  temples  of  a  new  worship.     So 


204  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

indeed  he  found  them  to  be,  "the  worship  of  the 
golden  shrine."  ""**  He  spent  much  time  investigating 
the  city  of  Lowell  and  its  industrial  institutions  dur- 
ing the  summer  of  1833.  In  his  youth  he  had  known 
the  site  of  this  city  as  a  farmstead.  Now  it  had  come 
to  be  the  equal  of  many  older  places  called  into  exist- 
ence, along  with  other  rivals  of  a  recent  day,  by  manu- 
facturing interests,  in  the  same  way  that  agriculture 
had  conjured  up  great  cities  in  the  forests  of  the  west. 
In  these  new  eastern  cities,  there  was  more  of  apparent 
culture  and  comfort  than  in  the  western  cities,  but  he 
thought  the  latter  the  most  wholesome  and  promising 
for  society.  Hard  as  he  knew  the  lot  of  the  western 
emigrant  to  be,  he  wished  that  more  people  would  go 
to  the  unoccupied  lands  of  the  west.  The  one  redeem- 
ing feature  that  is  well  worth  while,  as  he  sees  this 
gathering  of  the  youth  into  the  factory  centers,  is,  that 
they  are  not  far  removed  from  the  homes  of  their 
youth  and  the  graves  of  their  fathers.^" 

The  vast  numbers  of  children  and  youth  of  both 
sexes,  reared  together  in  the  factories,  amidst  the  inces- 
sant and  bewildering  clatter  and  whirl  of  machinery, 
breathing  a  heated  and  "unnatural  air  .  .  .  of 
cotton."  With  minds  unoccupied,  and  with  morbid 
excitements,  all  looked  most  serious ;  and  he  wondered 
if  New  England  could  escape  the  fate  of  Europe. 
The  blanched  faces,  slender  forms,  and  taper  fingers 
of  the  factory  girls  was  one  result  of  the  new  employ- 
ment. He  could  not  but  compare  unfavorably  these 
young  women,  as  the  future  wives  and  mothers,  with 
the  older  type  of  womanhood,  the  plump  form,  the 

3**  Flint.    Recollections,  1%^.  ^*^  Knickerbocker,  vol.  u,  2SI-211. 


NEW  ENGLAND  AND  NEW  YORK  205 

round,  ruddy,  pretty,  but  unthinking  Saxon  face  of 
the  farmer's  daughter.  Indeed  he  could  not  seem  to 
find  this  old  type  any  place  either  in  factory  city  or 
country  village,  except  on  the  faces  of  the  old  clocks. 
In  lieu  of  them  there  were  "the  insect  forms,  long  and 
pale  visages,  covered  with  calash  bonnets,  a  race  ap- 
parently imported  from  Italy."  ^*^ 

The  skilled  workers  in  the  factories,  he  remarks 
were  largely  foreigners,  and  they  served  to  add  to  the 
serious  problems  which  called  for  the  most  enlarged 
philanthropy  and  religious  zeal.  He  firmly  believed 
that  in  all  these  great  changes  the  New  England  char- 
acter would  not  be  found  wanting  or  "that  the  cor- 
porate arithmetical  intellect,  which  is  said  not  to  be 
guided  by  a  soul,  would  be  permitted  to  count  upon 
the  products  of  the  human  tenants  of  these  new 
establishments,  as  though  they  were  a  part  of  the 
machinery.""*' 

On  his  first  visit  Mr.  Flint  noticed  many  improve- 
ments with  which  he  was  much  pleased.  There  was 
an  air  of  nobleness  in  many  of  the  recent  buildings. 
Use  was  being  made  of  that  abundant  material,  stone. 
It  was  a  wonder  to  him  that  the  fathers  had  not  been 
as  wise  as  the  Germans  of  Pennsylvania,  in  their  use  of 
this  building  material.  The  newspapers  had  im- 
proved much.  Fine  writing  could  be  found  in  most 
of  them  and  he  saw  nothing  more  of  "the  cumbrous 
inanity  or  the  tiresome  insipidity,  that  used  to  fill  the 
papers."  Everybody  seemed  to  have  caught  the 
forms  of  good  society.     Hardly  a  farmer's  daughter 

3^6  Flint.     Recollections,  384,  386,  387. 
^^'Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  252. 


2o6  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

he  says,  "who  cannot  keep  up  a  sustained  conversa- 
tion, in  good  set  phrase,  upon  any  given  subject."  ^^'^ 

During  the  summer  of  1828  the  lines  "On  Revisit- 
ing the  Churchyard  of  my  Native  Place,"  were  writ- 
ten. These  were  called  forth  by  his  musings  over  the 
newly  made  grave  of  his  father  who  had  died  in  that 
year  at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety-one  years.^^* 

During  his  visit  to  New  England  in  the  summer  of 
1829,  Mr.  Flint  made  a  very  careful  examination  of 
the  then  famous  Siamese  twins,  and  gave  a  three  page 
account  of  them  in  his  Review.  At  this  time  also  he 
visited  the  war  ship  Columbus  in  Boston  Harbor,  ad- 
mired its  plain  simplicity  in  comparison  with  the 
flaunting  gaudiness  of  the  New  York  and  Liverpool 
packets,  and  then,  as  was  his  wont,  fell  to  moralizing 
over  a  possible  meeting  of  this  ship  w^ith  one  of  its 
kind  in  hostile  combat  upon  the  tempestuous  brine. 

.  What  a  sublime  idea  of  human  daring,  power,  con- 
trivance and  triumph  of  art  over  nature ;  what  an  affecting  em- 
blem of  the  reckless,  mad,  and  wanton  wrath  and  folly  of 
nations !  ^^° 

The  visit  which  was  made  in  the  early  summer  of 
1833,  was  extended  for  some  two  months  and  the  New 
England  experiences  are  more  fully  recorded  than  in 
any  other  of  his  journals  and  letters.  This  account 
was  in  a  letter  written  to  Dr.  James  Flint,  in  Septem- 
ber, from  the  Narrows,  Long  Island,  after  he  had  been 

^*s  Flint     Recollections,  385-390. 

349  Ij/estern  Monthly  Re'viens:,  vol.  ii,  210,  211.  Two  and  more  dates  are 
given  in  the  parish  records  of  North  Reading  for  the  birth  and  death  of  Mr. 
Flint's  father.  The  published  genealogies  do  not  give  the  date  of  his  death 
and  thus  it  is  uncertain.  In  this  poem  Flint  says  he  was  "fourscore  years 
and  ten." 

350  Jl'estern  Montlily  Re'vieiv,  vol.  ii,  286-289. 


NEW  ENGLAND  AND  NEW  YORK  207 

appointed  to  take  charge  of  the  Knickerbocker.^^^ 
His  health  was  very  poor  just  at  this  period.  It  was 
one  of  the  cholera  years,  and  he  had  several  premon- 
itions of  that  dread  disease  as  he  journeyed  from  Cin- 
cinnati via  Lake  Erie  and  the  canal.  As  several 
times  before,  so  he  was  compelled  now  to  travel,  when 
so  ill  as  to  be  often  obliged  to  rest  a  few  days  from  his 
journey,  and  to  seek  aid  from  the  local  physicians.  As 
he  left  the  city  which  had  been  his  home  for  several 
years,  very  early  in  the  morning,  he  felt,  he  says, 
that:  "There  is  nothing  like  the  gloom  from  travers- 
ing a  sleeping  city."  The  ravages  of  the  cholera 
were  everywhere  visible  as  he  journeyed  north.  But 
it  did  not  wholly  prevent  his  pleasure  in  the  great  im- 
provements of  the  country  since  last  he  passed  that 
way,  nor  his  enjoyment  of  the  fine  roads -while  they 
lasted.  When  all  hands  must  alight  and  help  lift  the 
stage  out  of  the  hole  in  the  midst  of  a  swamp,  he  is  as 
jovial  over  the  mishap  as  in  the  days  of  his  misfor- 
tunes upon  the  "Father  of  Waters."  While  there  are 
few  travelers  who  "have  traversed  the  whole  extent  of 
the  United  States  oftener  than  myself,"  he  says,  "per- 
haps none  have  had  so  few  accidents  to  record,"  or  "so 
seldom  encountered  the  annoyance  of  personal  rude- 
ness." As  always,  he  finds  friends.  "General  Mil- 
ler, late  Governor  of  Missouri,"  remained  with  him 
during  his  detention  from  his  journey  by  sickness. 

He  objects  to  the  "shelves"  on  the  canal  boats  (and 
even  on  the  elegant  steamboats  where  it  was  the  same) , 

^f*!  Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  242-263.  Mr.  Gallagher  said  in  the  Cin- 
cinnati Mirror,  July  6,  1833,  vol.  ii,  168,  that  Mr.  Flint  had  taken  charge 
of  the  Knickerbocker. 


2o8  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

which  are  so  narrow  that  a  sleeper  could  not  turn  over, 
and  so  short  that  a  man  above  five  feet  ten  could  not 
stretch  himself  in  them.  On  this  journey  Mr.  Flint 
seems  to  have  had  his  first  experience  on  the  railroad. 
He  says  of  it: 

In  passing  on  the  rail-road  from  Schenectady  to  Albany,  one 
experiences  the  unique  sensation,  with  which  it  must  require  a 
long  time  to  become  familiar,  resulting  from  the  swift  motion  of 
a  long  h'ne  of  cars  following  the  smoking  engine,  as  if  it  were  a 
thing  of  life.  The  gentleness  of  the  motion  renders  it  difficult 
to  estimate  its  rapidity,  which  is  easily  measured,  however,  by  the 
apparent  dizzying  flight  of  trees  and  fences."^- 

He  spent  a  month  with  Doctor  Flint  and  they  vis- 
ited their  birth  place  in  North  Reading.  Here,  he 
says: 

We  once  more  saw  together  the  church  where  we  were  bap- 
tized, and  the  church  yard  containing  the  remains  of  our  parents 
and  our  kindred,  the  place  of  our  first  thoughts  and  imaginings, 
and  beheld  the  faces  of  our  kindred,  and  the  companions  of  our 
first  days,  that  still  survive.  What  a  change  had  time  wrought, 
since  our  last  visit  to  the  same  places ! 

He  visited  for  the  second  time,  his  former  parish  of 
Lunenburg,  "where,"  he  says,  "before  I  became  a  so- 
journer in  the  distant  west,  I  terminated  a  ministry  of 
fourteen  years."  Since  then  he  had  wandered  so  far, 
experienced  so  much,  and  labored  in  pursuits  so  far 
from  this  place  as  to  cause  doubts  whether  his  expe- 
riences here  were  remembrances  or  dreams.  "The 
whole  seemed  like  the  consciousness  of  transmigra- 
tion, and  of  having  long  been  in  a  different  mode  of 
being  from  that  I  passed  here." ''''  About  the  time  of 
his  visit,  Lunenburg  was  in  the  midst  of  a  very  bitter 
theological  controversy  which  resulted  two  years  later 

^^-Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  250-251.  353 —  Idem,  251,  253,  254. 


NEW  ENGLAND  AND  NEW  YORK  209 

in  the  organization  of  a  Trinitarian  church.''"*  This 
latter  church,  as  in  so  many  places  proved  the  most 
vital,  and  the  old  church  of  which  Mr.  Flint  was  pas- 
tor ceased  to  exist  as  an  organization  in  1867.®^'^ 

Mr.  Flint  traveled  in  New  Hampshire  and  Mass- 
achusetts extensively  at  this  time  and  the  saddest  thing 
of  all  that  he  saw  in  this  region  was  two  or  three 
churches  where  formerly  there  was  but  one,  "erected 
as  hostile  spiritual  batteries  against  each  other,  where 
the  means  of  the  whole  place,  were  with  difficulty  ad- 
equate to  the  support  of  a  single  minister."  "We 
everywhere  heard  the  bickering  and  tale  bearing  of 
mutual  efTforts  at  proselytism."  The  sacred  "wed- 
lock" character  of  the  old  pastorate  was  gone. 

Strange  that  all  this  should  grow  out  of  the  inculcation  of  the 
religion  of  the  Prince  of  Peace !  .  .  .  The  more  minute  and 
undefinable  the  question  of  dispute,  the  fiercer  and  more  embit- 
tered the  quarrel  about  it,  and  the  more  positively  eternal  sal- 
vation is  made  to  depend  upon  embracing  or  rejecting  it. 

But  he  always  sees  a  bright  spot  even  if  it  is  far  re- 
moved and  somewhat  clouded : 

The  gas  of  human  pride  and  intolerance  of  opinion  would  be 
dangerous,  if  it  remained  pent  up  in  the  human  breast.  Perhaps 
it  escapes  as  safely  through  this  valve,  as  that  of  politics,  or  of 
philosophical  dogmas.  Unhappily  the  ultimate  tendency  is  to 
bring  contempt  and  reproach  upon  the  worthy  name,  by  which 
we  are  called.'^* 

In  Boston  he  attended  a  meeting  of  his  class,  thirty- 
three  years  having  elapsed  since  their  graduation. 
This  was  the  first  time  he  had  been  able  to  meet  with 
them  in  many  years.     The  meeting  was  held  at  the 

2^*  See  Congregational  Year  Book   (Boston,   1909),  238. 
3-"'^  Lunenburg  Parish  Records. 
^'^^  Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  25+. 


210  riMOTHY    FLINT 

home  of  Lemuel  Shaw,  chief  justice  of  the  state.     Of 
this  meeting  Mr.  Flint  speaks  very  feelingly.     He 
says:    "and  in  that  long  interval  the  stern  king  of  the 
scythe  and  hour  glass  had  scathed  our  numbers  with  a 
deadlier  mortality,  than  the  issue  of  the  severest  bat- 
tle."    It  was  a  proud  roll  that  they  called.     "Our 
heroes  and  sages,  upon  our  showing,  only  wanted  their 
Homers  and  Pindars,  to  have  figured  with  the  best." 
But  most  of  the  number  had  forever  ceased  from  col- 
lege trick  and  quip  and  crank,  as  from  all  life's  labors. 
Gray  hairs  reminded  us,  the  survivors,  that  we  could  not  be 
far  behind.     .     .     I   have  not  passed  an  evening  calling  forth 
more  kindness  of  feeling.     The  mirth  was  of  the  cast  that  cheers 
the  heart,  indeed,  but  springs  from  the  same  fountains  which 
give  birth  to  tears.^^^ 

Mr.  Flint  had  located  "at  the  Narrows,  on  Long 
Island,  in  view^  of  the  splendid  bay  of  New  York, 
studded  and  whitened  with  sails,  and  in  front  of  the 
fresh  and  verdant  landscapes  of  Staten  Island,"  early 
enough  in  September  to  take  charge  of  the  October 
number  of  the  Knickerbocker.  It  does  not  seem  that 
he  ever  brought  his  family  to  New  York,  or  that  he 
resided  here  more  than  a  month  or  two  at  this  time. 
He  was  in  very  poor  health  when  he  took  charge  of 
the  magazine  and  seems  to  indicate  in  his  first  editor- 
ial, that  he  regarded  the  step  as  a  doubtful  experiment 
on  this  account. 

The  Knickerbocker  was  in  its  second  volume,  and  it 
was  the  fourth  number  which  Mr.  Flint  edited.  It 
had  been  without  an  editor-in-chief  for  six  months, 
ever  since  Mr.  Charles  Fenno  Hoffman  had  retired  in 
March.     The  acting  editor,  Samuel  Daly  Langtree, 

^57  Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  261-263. 


NEW  ENGLAND  AND  NEW  YORK  211 

had  charge  in  the  interim  and  again  after  Mr.  Flint's 
departure.  Mr.  Langtree's  statement  in  the  maga- 
zine about  editorial  affairs,  indicates  that  Mr.  Flint 
was  in  full  charge  of  but  the  one  number,  that  for  Oct- 
ober, 1833.     Mr.  Langtreesays: 

During  the  remainder  of  the  time  that  distinguished  scholar 
was  announced  as  editor  of  this  periodical,  the  precarious  state  of 
his  health  did  not  permit  his  residing  in  this  city:  and  his  final 
resignation,  from  the  same  cause,  made  no  further  derangement 
in  its  direction  than  the  withdrawal  of  his  name."^^ 

Doctor  Flint  also  says  that  his  cousin  retired  from 
the  magazine  before  the  end  of  1833.  However,  he 
supplied  much  of  the  material  for  the  magazine  until 
February,  1834.  ^^s  actual  retirement  from  the 
magazine  must  have  taken  place  then,  before  the  end 
of  the  year,  and  he  would  be  at  home  in  Cincinnati 
until  about  January  of  1834,  when  he  moved  back  to 
Alexandria,  Louisiana. 

Mr.  Flint's  relations  with  the  proprietors  at  this 
time,  Messrs.  Peabody  and  Company,  and  with  the 
editor  in  charge,  Mr.  Langtree,  were  most  cordial. 
He  was  held  in  high  esteem  and  honor  by  them.  But 
the  magazine  was  bitterly  attacked  by  a  few  enemies 
of  Mr.  Flint  even  before  he  took  charge  of  it,  under 
the  misapprehension  that  he  was  already  the  editor. 
This  misapprehension  had  probably  risen  from  the 
fact  that  he  had  already  contributed  leading  articles 
to  the  magazine  after  the  retirement  of  Mr.  Hoffman. 
It  is  possible  also  that  Mr.  Flint  had  some  family  ties 
with  the  Peabody  of  this  firm,  as  he  had  with  the 
Salem  family  of  that  name. 

On  taking  editorial  charge  of  the  Knickerbocker, 

^^^  Knickerbocker,  vol.  iii,  320. 


212  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

October,  1833,  ^^r.  Flint  said  that  he  had  some  doubts 
about  the  wisdom  of  his  past  course  of  attempting  to 
overcome  abuse  by  silence,  "and  to  enact  saint  among 
the  children  of  Belial/'  He  meant  still  to  continue 
"under  the  banners  of  the  peace  society,  but  no  longer 
to  the  limit  of  eschewing  self-defence."^^''  Accord- 
ingly he  availed  himself  of  this  new  indulgence  in  the 
October  number  of  the  Knickerbocker^  to  even  up 
with  the  editor  of  the  American  Monthly  Review,  and 
with  Judge  James  Hall  of  Cincinnati.  The  latter  had 
sarcastically  and  wittily  ridiculed  Flint's  "Lectures 
upon  Natural  History"  in  his  IVesiern  Monthly  Mag- 
azine.'''''' The  former  had  attacked  him  on  account  of 
the  same  book  in  a  long  review.'^'  Both  critics  of 
Mr.  Flint  had  room  to  criticise  this  work  and  the  Re- 
view made  some  fair  criticisms,  but  they  were,  as 
Flint  says,  "malignant,"  if  not  "lumbering  and  dull." 
Flint  proves  himself  very  skillful  at  newspaper  abuse, 
but  it  is  the  most  disappointing  piece  of  work  which 
his  pen  has  left."""  The  only  excuse  is  that  he  did 
what  the  majority  of  his  time  were  doing. 

About  the  time  Mr.  Flint  took  charge  of  the  Knick- 
erbocker^ Mrs.  Trollope's  Domestic  Manners  of  the 
Americans  was  being  very  widely  read  and  most  in- 
dignantly commented  upon.  Mr.  Flint's  intimate 
acquaintance  with  Mrs.  TroUope  during  her  residence 
in  Cincinnati,  covering  a  period  of  perhaps  a  year  and 
a  half,  soon  after  Flint  established  himself  and  family 
in  that  city,  had  led  to  his  being  asked  he  was  sure,  "a 
thousand  times,  what  sort  of  person  was  Mrs.  Trol- 
lope,  and  what  were  her  objects  in  visiting  America?" 

3^9  Knickerbocker,  vol.   ii,  241.  ^ei  Vol.    iii,   261    ff. 

^''^  Vol.  i,  262-273.  ^^-Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  310. 


NEW  ENGLAND  AND  NEW  YORK  213 

He  devoted  several  pages  to  answering  this  question 
and  to  a  criticism  of  Mrs.  TroUope's  book.'"  His 
description  of  her  personal  appearance,  and  of  her 
habits  in  society,  and  judgment  in  business  matters  is 
not  very  complimentary,  especially  in  view  of  Mrs. 
TroUope's  warm  expressions  of  approval  of  Mr.  Flint. 
She  had  said  many  things  complimentary,  and  put  in 
a  note  in  her  first  volume  to  say :  "The  pleasant,  easy, 
unpretending  talk  on  all  subjects,  which  I  enjoyed  in 
Mr.  Flint's  family  was  an  exception  to  everything 
else  I  met  at  Cincinnati."  ^^*  Mr.  Flint  thinks  that  her 
business  ventures  could  not  possibly  have  succeeded, 
and  that  her  judgment  of  church,  state,  and  society 
were  absolutely  without  value.  Moreover  he  thinks 
that  if  she  had  been  wise  enough  to  have  secured  en- 
trance to  the  best  society,  as  she  might  have  done  in 
Cincinnati,  and  if  she  had  used  the  sixteen  or  seven- 
teen thousand  dollars  that  she  foolishly  sunk  in  bus- 
iness, to  open  an  account  at  the  local  bank, 
"she  would  have  been  dinnered  and  toasted  and  the 
fashion.  .  .  America  would  have  been  an  ocean 
of  milk  and  honey.  The  people  would  have  been 
lamblike,  and  half  saints.  In  short  she  would  have 
found  everything  just  as  far  south-west  toward  para- 
dise, as  she  has  now  found  it  north-east  a  rinfer^^^'^ 
He  is  complimentary  in  speaking  of  her  wide  reading, 
and  very  extensive  acquaintance  with  noted  men  and 
great  events  in  Europe.  There  is  one  thing  that  he 
thinks  she  knows  very  well  how  to  do,  and  that  she  has 
done  well  in  her  book.     He  says:    "Manners,  when 

3"-^  Knickerbocker,   vol.  ii,    286-292. 

'^'^*  Trollopc,  Mrs.     Domestic  Manners  of  the  Americans,  vol.  i,  128,  note. 

^^°  Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  292. 


214  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

and  where  she  chooses,  she  describes  well,  for  it  is  in 
her  line.''  This  admission  by  Mr.  Flint  is  significant 
when  we  read  some  of  the  things  that  she  said  about 
American  manners,  as  she  found  them  at  Cincinnati, 
such  as  the  following: 

My  general  appellation  amongst  mj-  neighbors  was  "the  Eng- 
lish old  woman,"  but  in  mentioning  each  other  they  constantly 
employed  the  term  "lady" ;  and  they  evidently  had  pleasure  in 
using  it,  for  I  repeatedly  observed,  that  in  speaking  of  a  neighbor, 
instead  of  saying  Mrs.  Such-a-one,  they  described  her  as  "the 
lady  over  the  way  that  takes  in  washing,"  or  as  "that  there  lady, 
out  by  the  gully,  what  is  making  dip-candles."  Mr.  Trollope 
was  constantly  called  "the  old  man,"  while  draymen,  butcher's 
boys,  and  the  laborers  on  the  canal  were  invariably  denominated 
"them  gentlemen."  ^"'^ 

During  her  whole  stay  in  the  country  she  says  she 
did  not  hear  a  sentence  elegantly  turned  and  correctly 
pronounced  from  the  lips  of  an  American. 

Were  Americans,  indeed,  disposed  to  assume  the  plain  unpre- 
tending deportment  of  the  Switzer  in  the  da3's  of  his  picturesque 
simplicity'  (when,  however,  he  never  chewed  tobacco),  it  would 
be  in  bad  taste  to  censure  him  ;  but  this  is  not  the  case.  Jonathan 
will  be  a  fine  gentleman,  but  it  must  be  in  his  own  way.  Is  he 
not  a  free-born  American?  Jonathan,  however,  must  remember, 
that  if  he  will  challenge  competition  with  the  old  world,  the  old 
world  will  now  and  then  look  out  to  see  how  he  supports  his 
pretensions.^^'^ 

Mr.  Flint  remarks  further  about  some  of  these  cus- 
toms that  Mrs.  Trollope  condemns,  as  for  instance 
"the  villanous  and  filthy  and  savage  and  universal 
habit,  growing  into  use  even  by  boys,  of  chewing  and 
smoking  tobacco."  During  a  recent  long  journey  this 
habit  had  forced  itself  upon  his  observation  and  espe- 

3^*^  Trollope,  Mrs.  op.  cit.,  vol.  i,  140. 
367  —  Idem,  167. 


NEW  ENGLAND  AND  NEW  YORK  215 

cially  since  Mrs.  Trollope  had  called  his  attention  to 
it.  It  is  too  true  he  admits  that  "Americans  are  most 
filthily  given  to  spitting,  though  they  do  not,  as  the 
Edinburgh  [Review]  says,  spit  as  soon  as  they  are 
born,  and  spit  through  life,  and  spit  out  their  expiring 
breath."  Mr.  Flint  is  willing  that  Mrs.  Trollope 
should  "apply  the  lash  to  these  vile  customs." 

Let  her  correct  the  visible  rudeness  and  boorishness  of  man- 
ners, that  seems  to  be  growing  up  from  our  habits  of  equality,  and 
being  all  as  though  inmates  of  a  public  house  on  the  road  and  in 
steamboats.  Her  rebukes  have  already  done  visible  good.  May 
they  still  do  more.  There  is  ample  space  for  further  improve- 
ment.^^* 

While  Mr.  Flint's  connection  w^ith  the  New  York 
magazine  was  very  brief,  yet  it  is  important  because 
it  lets  us  far  into  his  thought  and  work  at  this  period. 
Mr.  Langtree,  the  editor  of  the  Knickerbocker,  takes 
a  very  kindly  leave  of  Mr.  Flint  in  the  February  num- 
ber of  his  magazine,  as  follows : 

One  thing  we  are  glad  of,  which  is,  that  the  eminent  scholar 
and  distinguished  man  -  the  Father  of  the  Literature  of  his 
Country  -  whose  name  lately  honored  this  Magazine,  had  hap- 
pily resigned  its  charge  in  time  to  spare  his  venerable  age  the 
mortification  of  witnessing  the  unworthy  fact,  that  a  character 
which  abroad  is  reverenced,  and  respected,  and  admired,  as  it 
should  be,  could  not,  at  home,  avail  to  prevent  the  wretched 
insult  and  pointless  jest  which  ever}'  little  scribbler  seemed  ele- 
vated in  the  consciousness  that  he  was  able  to  discharge. 

We  care  not  for  the  storm :  but,  illustrious  man !  for  the  credit 
of  this  country,  and  for  the  honor  of  humanity,  we  feel  rejoiced, 
that  thou  wilt  see  no  more  of  that  spirit  which,  however  we  know- 
that  it  existed,  we  had  still  hitherto  supposed  would,  toward  such 
as  thee,  have  forgotten  its  acerbidity.^*'^ 

3'^^  Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  291. 
^^^ —  Idem,  vol.  iii,  160. 


XIV.  TRAVELS  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES 

When  Mr.  Flint  gave  up  his  work  in  New  York 
and  moved  with  his  family  from  Cincinnati  to  Alex- 
andria it  might  seem  that  he  was  ready  to  live  there 
quietly  for  the  remainder  of  his  days.  But  it  was 
during  the  first  year  or  two  of  this  residence  in  the 
south,  in  1834  and  1835,  that  his  travels  became  more 
extended  than  at  any  other  period  in  his  life.  The 
chief  reason  for  this  was  the  one  that  had  several  times 
before  sent  him  on  long  journeys -the  search  for 
health.  Besides  this  there  was  now  a  freedom  from 
business  cares  and  sufficient  means  for  such  expenses, 
not  to  mention  the  old  love  of  travel  which  still  re- 
mained with  him,  that  caused  him  to  venture  into  new 
and  widely  separated  portions  of  the  world. 

Mr.  Flint  speaks  of  his  own  reasons  for  traveling 
at  this  period  of  his  life.  He  says  he  was  like  other 
invalids  who  were  compelled,  with  the  sea-fowl  and 
the  swans  to  "anticipate  the  autumnal  northern  storms, 
and  sail  before  them  to  the  land,  'where  the  citron 
tree  blooms,'  and  frost  is  unknown.  .  ."^^"  More 
than  once  before,  and  now  again,  he  recovered  his 
health,  while  on  some  long,  and  what  would  be  to 
most  invalids,  a  most  trying  journey.  He  seemed  to 
find  relief  in  the  very  strangeness  and  novelty  of  his 
surroundings.     It  was  not  only  the  change  of  climate 

^^•^  "Sketches  of  Travel,  Number  Two,"  in  Knickerbocker,  vol.  v,  279. 


2i8  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

that  he  sought  but  ''to  beguile  the  time  rendered  weary 
by  ill  health  ...  to  distract,  by  noting  diver- 
sity of  character,  objects,  and  incidents,  the  painful 
attention,  which  undiverted,  an  invalid  is  too  apt  to 
turn  in  upon  the  observation  of  the  ever-varying  symp- 
toms of  his  illness."  "^  Under  these  circumstances,  he 
began,  after  only  a  few  months  in  Alexandria  in  the 
early  part  of  1834,  what  was  probably  his  most  extend- 
ed journey.  The  records,  or  those  which  have  thus 
far  been  discovered,  are  quite  fragmentary,  but  it 
seems  that  he  left  Alexandria  about  the  first  of  April 
and  journeyed  to  the  north. 

Just  before  this  trip  was  begun  there  was  a  great 
fire  in  Alexandria,  which  occurred  upon  the  evening 
of  the  thirtieth  of  March,  1834.  We  have  Mr.  Flint's 
vivid  description  of  this.  He  had  seen  two  or  three 
of  the  most  destructive  fires  that  had  ever  occurred  in 
the  history  of  our  cities.  But  the  brilliant  young  fo- 
liage, the  deep,  calm,  red  waters  of  the  canallike  river, 
furnished  a  background  which  made  this  "A  Splendid 
Spectacle,"  though  he  was  not  unmindful  of  the  morn- 
ing, "when  the  bright  sun  should  have  robbed  the 
scene  of  its  enchantment.""^' 

The  next  word  from  Mr.  Flint  is  in  a  Knickerbock- 
er article,  "Sketches  of  Travels,""'^  where  he  says: 

Near  the  close  of  May,  at  the  gray  of  the  dawn  of  a  delightful 
New-England  Spring  morning,  I  rolled  away  from  Boston  over 
the  Charlestown  and  Maiden  bridges,  on  a  tour  to  -  among 
other  places  -  Lake  Winnipisaukee,  and  the  White  Mountains 
of  New-Hampshire. 

3'i  Knickerbocker y  vol.  v,  284. 
^''~  —  Idem,  vol.  iv,  295,  296. 
^^*  —  Idem,  vol.  V,  242-245. 


TRAVELS  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES  219 

The  turf  was  a  carpet  of  the  tenderest  and  most  bril- 
liant verdure.  The  fruit  trees  in  full  blossom,  the  air 
rife  with  a  delicious  aroma.  On  the  route  through 
Reading,  Andover  and  Haverhill,  he  communes  with 
himself  saying  Peace  to  you,  my  native  New  England- 
ers !  He  dared  not  go  further  in  recording  his  thoughts 
at  this  time.  The  birth  place  of  Harriet  Newell  in 
Haverhill  was  pointed  out  to  him  and  led  him  to  re- 
mark about  her  memoirs,  about  the  unequalled  cir- 
culation of  the  little  book,  the  "true  pathos,  the  deep 
feeling,  the  exalted  poetry  of  religious  sentiment" 
which  abounded  even  in  the  midst  of  much  tiresome 
repetition. 

He  had  not  heard  the  Merrimac  "celebrated  for  its 
beauty :  but  rolling  along  its  green  banks,  dashing  over 
its  rocks,  filling  its  noble  channel,"  it  struck  him  as  a 
singularly  romantic  and  beautiful  river.  The  White 
Mountains  were  still  white  with  snow  when  they  "be- 
gan to  stand  forth  on  the  Northern  horizon,  glittering 
in  the  beams  of  the  declining  sun."  They  seemed  to 
him  "the  noblest  mountains  in  North  America,  east 
of  the  Mexican  piles  of  Orizaba.""^* 

The  traveler  dwells  briefly  upon  scenes  and  places 
in  New  Hampshire  and  sails  down  Lake  Champlain 
and  passes  it  with  a  single,  "charming,"  leaving  its 
further  description  to  other  travelers.  On  the  shores 
of  Canada  he  pauses  to  view  a  foreign  country,  for  the 
"spruce,  capoted,  brisk,  sun-burnt,  chattering  Creoles 
of  La  Prairie  afford  a  striking  variety,  and  remind 

"''*  Mr.  Flint  might  seem  to  imply  here  that  he  had  been  in  Mexico.  But 
there  is  no  time  when  such  a  visit  could  easily  have  been  made  and  no  direct 
reference  to  it.  This  implication  and  others  like  it  are  probably  the  result 
of  his  realistic  way  of  putting  things. 


220  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

him,"  that  he  has  reached  such  a  country.  In  Quebec 
he  is  struck  with  the  great  numbers  of  American  trav- 
elers from  every  part  of  the  land,  and  accounts  for 
their  presence  there  by  the  new  facilities  in  traveling 
which  have,  in  some  sense  annihilated  space  and 
time.^'^ 

Of  travel  in  this  country  he  says:  "No  where - 
give  the  English  their  due -are  there  finer  or  better 
found  steam-boats,  than  those  that  ply  between  Que- 
bec and  Montreal."  He  had  no  space  in  which  to 
dwell  upon  many  things  that  interested  him  in  this 
new  land,  such  as  the  "grand  spectacle  of  the  Mont- 
morency .  .  .  the  majestic  Ottawa  .  .  .  those 
prodigious  works  of  art,  the  Rideau  and  Weliand  Ca- 
nals .  .  .  the  unique  scenery  about  Quebec - 
nothing  of  the  strange  Upper  Town,  perched  upon 
its  eagle  eyrie  of  rocks  -nothing  of  the  historic  plains 
of  Abraham."  But  he  takes  time  to  give  a  vivid 
picture  of  the  life  on  one  of  the  St.  Lawrence  boats, 
and  to  marvel  at  the  beauty  of  nature  and  art  on  the 
great  river's  banks,  where  "the  bleak  and  inexorable 
winter  breeze  but  a  few  days  since  whistled  over  this 
same  scenery,  then  a  surface  of  snow,  six  feet  in  depth, 
and  that  this  broad  stream  .  .  .  was  then 
bridged  with  ice,  as  thick  and  firm  as  the  solid  earth, 
in  the  midst  of  a  desolate  nature,  where  Winter  and 
Death  held  undisputed  empire."^'*' 

In  another  article,  Mr.  Flint  tells  of  an  interesting 
gathering  of  a  few  friends  in  Montreal,  which  must 
have  occurred  at  this  time.  The  conversation  drifted 
into  a  discussion  of  books  of  travel.     The  caricatures 


3'5  Knickerbocker,  vol.  v,  244.  ^'^  —  Idem,  244,  245. 


TRAVELS  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES  221 

in  John  Bull  in  America  were  highly  appreciated  by 
the  company;  but  misrepresentations  of  Captain 
Hall,  Major  Hamilton,  and  Mrs.  Trollope  were  re- 
sented by  all  present.     One  of  the  company  present, 

who  is  represented  by  Mr.  Flint  as  a  "Mr,  M ", 

but  whose  writings  sound  very  much  like  our  well 
known  "T.  F."  offered  to  bring  to  the  company  by  the 
next  evening  "a  synopsis  of  the  books  of  the  pedantic 
and  arrogant  Captain  Hall,  that  of  the  coarse  flippant 
and  vulgar  man-in-petticoats,  Mrs.  Trollope,  as  well 
as  of  the  impudent  coxcomb,  Major  Hamilton."  This 
"synopsis"  is  given  us  in  nine  or  ten  pages  of  an  article 
in  the  Knickerbocker  on  "English  Caricatures."  It 
is  not  the  least  interesting  but  it  is  among  the  least  ad- 
mirable of  Mr.  Flint's  literary  productions  which 
have  been  preserved."" 

The  northern  journey,  Mr.  Flint  says,  had  for  him, 
"remembrances  of  recovered  health,  corroding  anxi- 
eties laid  asleep,  pleasant  acquaintances,  and  half-for- 
gotten dreams,  as  gay  and  agreeable  to  dwell  upon  in 
the  retrospect,  as  I  ever  expect  to  have  of  any  days 
still  reserved  for  me  in  the  future  of  this  life."  ^^^  How 
long  this  visit  was  continued  or  just  where  Mr.  Flint 
traveled  after  his  restoration  to  health  we  do  not  defi- 
nitely know.  It  is  one  of  the  places  where  material  is 
short  and  where  we  would  most  like  to  know  what 
came  next  in  the  experiences  of  our  friend. 

It  is  from  the  middle  of  this  summer  of  1834,  until 
the  sev^enth  of  November  that  we  must  place  the  Euro- 
pean journey  if  we  are  to  conclude  that  Mr.  Flint 
made  one.     After  the  Canadian  travels  he  would  have 

^'^'Knickerbocker,  vol.  v,  396-408.  ^^^^ —  Idem,  245. 


222  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

several  months  in  which  to  make  this  trip  to  the  old 
world -the  world  of  which  he  had  read  and  dreamed 
so  much.  His  restored  health,  his  leisure,  easy  access 
to  the  great  lines  of  ocean  travel,  would  suggest  and 
make  possible  the  trip  at  this  time.  From  the  refer- 
ence to  it'''  in  May,  1835,  there  is  no  time  for  it  later, 
and  I  do  not  see  where  there  is  any  time  for  it  in  the 
years  before  his  final  location  in  Alexandria.  If  it 
had  been  earlier  it  hardly  seems  possible  that  such  an 
experience  would  go  without  mention  in  the  numerous 
writings  which  cover,  almost  if  not  quite,  every  year  of 
his  life  up  to  this  time. 

The  reference  to  the  European  experiences  is  as 
follows : 

For  myself,  I  have  seen  Europe,  the  West  Indies,  and  South 
America,  and  have  compared  my  impressions  of  what  I  there 
savi^,  with  what  I  have  seen  in  the  United  States  and  Canada. 
Generally  speaking,  we  have  little  to  compare  with  Europe,  in 
point  of  architecture,  sumptuous  erections,  and  monuments  of 
the  arts.  But,  contrary  to  the  general  impression,  and  the  arro- 
gant boast  of  the  European  travelers  among  us,  Boston,  New- 
York,  and  Philadelphia  -  particularly  the  latter  -  are  intrinsically 
handsomer  towns,  and  strike  the  eye  of  an  impartial  observer,  I 
dare  be  bound  to  say,  more  agreeably  than  most  of  the  European 
capitals,  in  every  point  of  view,  except  extent;  and  two  of  our 
cities  sustain  no  mean  competition  with  most  of  them,  except 
London  and  Paris,  even  in  that  point  of  view.  But  our  natural 
scenery,  in  many  respects,  incomparably  exceeds  that  of  Europe. 
It  is  out  of  the  question  that  there  is  nothing  in  the  old  world  to 
compare  with  the  grandeur  of  our  rivers,  lakes,  water-falls,  and 
forests.  .  .  The  Alps  and  Apennines,  it  is  true,  present  more 
elevated  peaks,  more  sublime  ranges  of  rock  and  glacier.  But 
after  all,  it  is  naked  sublimity  alone,  for  their  mountain  scenery 
is  bald,  ragged,  revolting.      [Mr.  Flint  never  visited  the  Rocky 

379  Knickerbocker,  vol.  v,  397. 


TRAVELS  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES  223 

Mountains  and  seems  here  to  have  forgotten  of  their  existence.] 
Trees,  verdure,  cultivation,  are  never  seen  upon  their  higher 
summits.^^° 

There  are  several  reasons  for  doubting  whether  Mr. 
Flint  actually  visited  Europe.  "English  Carica- 
tures," the  article  in  which  he  refers  to  the  matter, 
does  not,  as  is  usual,  have  his  initials  appended.  It  is 
announced  as  "By  the  Author  of  'Macoupin,  or  the 
Talking  Potato.'"  The  article  is  more  impersonal 
than  is  usual  with  Mr.  Flint.  It  is,  however,  credited 
to  him  in  the  index  of  the  magazine.  "Macoupin"  is 
also  credited  to  him  in  the  same  way  and  has  his  ini- 
tials at  the  end  of  the  article.  Again,  if  Mr.  Flint 
was  in  Europe  in  the  summer  and  fall  of  1834  i^  seems 
very  strange  that  in  the  extensive  articles  for  the 
Athenceum^  which  it  would  seem  must  have  been  pre- 
pared just  after  this  time,  there  is  no  reference  what- 
ever to  this  experience,  though  there  are  many  passages 
where  it  might  fittingly  have  been  referred  to.  Dr. 
James  Flint  does  not  mention  it,  and,  what  is  still  more 
important,  perhaps,  is  the  fact  that  the  family  of  Mr. 
Flint,  or  those  of  them  now  living  in  Alexandria, 
Louisiana,  think  that  he  never  made  such  a  journey.^" 

About  the  same  arguments  may  be  made  against  the 
statement  that  Mr.  Flint  here  makes  in  reference  to 
South  America.  There  is,  however,  more  circum- 
stantial evidence  for  thinking  that  he  may  have  been  in 
that  part  of  the  world.  There  was  time  for  it  when 
he  made  the  trip  south  in  January,  1832.  It  was  at 
that  time  that  he  wrote  his  first  South  American  story 

^^°  Knickerbocker,  vol.   v,   397. 

^^^  Letter  of  Fredric  Seip,  Alexandria,  La.,  Jan.  20,  1910,  in  Harvard 
University  Library. 


224  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

and  that  he  says  he  gathered  the  material  for  it.^*' 
After  this  he  wrote  several  stories  which  had  their 
setting  in  South  America.  It  might  also  have  oc- 
curred at  the  time  of  the  Cuban  trip  which  is  now  to  be 
mentioned,  though  it  is  hard  to  account  for  his  silence 
about  such  an  important  part  of  a  journey  if  it  oc- 
curred at  that  time. 

Mr.  Flint  says  of  the  traveler: 

The  requisite  qualifications  are,  natural  endowments,  much 
previous  instruction,  capability  of  keen  perception  and  enjoyment 
of  the  beautiful  and  sublime  in  natural  scenery,  a  generous  and 
philosophic  mind  to  observe  men,  manners,  institutions,  laws, 
literature  ...  a  sincere  desire  to  separate  the  true  from 
the  seeming,  and  more  than  all,  an  indulgent  and  impartial  spirit, 
and  a  disposition  to  find  enjoyment,  wherever  propriety  and 
innocence  allow."^" 

When  he  wrote  these  words  he  was  moralizing  over 
the  writings  of  different  types  of  travelers.  However, 
it  is  a  good  description  of  Mr.  Flint,  the  accomplished 
traveler,  as  he  begins  the  journey  of  1834- 1835  ^^^ 
the  last  one  of  which  we  have  any  detailed  account. 

From  New  Orleans  to  Havana  was  a  three  to  five 
days'  journey.  He  did  not  stop  in  that  busy  mart  but 
decided  to 

Mount  the  volante,  and  through  lanes  bounded  with  cofifee 
plantations  on  the  one  hand,  and  cane  on  the  other,  to  seek  shelter 
among  the  palms. 

Here  had  I  passed  my  winter  in  air,  in  sun,  or  shade,  as  tem- 
perature or  my  feelings  inclined  me.  .  .  I  had  resided  in  a 
planter's  family,  in  the  middle  condition,  of  which  half  were 
New-Englanders,  half  Creoles,  catholics,  easy  in  circumstances, 

•^^-  See   page  200. 

38-  Knickerbocker,  vol.  v,  396.  Mr.  Flint's  comment  on  the  social  and 
political  importance  of  travel  is  interesting.  See  Knickerbocker,  vol.  iv, 
i68,  169. 


TRAVELS  liN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES  225 

gentle  and  affectionate  in  their  intercourse,  kind  and  forbearing 
to  their  servants,  attentive  to  me,  and  their  lanjnaage  and  move- 
ments invested  with  an  amusing,  languid,  sleepy  kind  of  drawl, 
which  I  traced  to  their  indolence  and  delicious  climate.  .  . 
Not  that  the  gentleman  and  ladies  had  not  a  full  touch  of  human 
nature  in  their  constitution  here,  as  elsewhere. 

There  too  was  there  smirking,  coquetry,  the  inflic- 
tion of  bright  eyes,  the  love  of  woman  for  new  styles, 
the  rich  and  poor,  as  in  other  parts  of  the  w^orld.'^^* 

Toward  the  middle  of  March  he  started  north  be- 
cause "coolness  fled,  even  from  the  w^hispering  palm 
groves."  He  returned  to  Havana  and  began  anew 
the  attempt  to  "beguile  ill  health  in  the  revolutions 
of  perpetual  change."  While  the  negroes  chattered, 
"and  numerous  casks  were  draying  and  rolling  along 
the  streets,  and  the  dews  dripped  from  the  graceful 
palms,  just  as  they  will  do  at  the  same  hour  next 
March,"  he  entered  "the  good  ship  Union  for  Bos- 
ton." The  first  two  days  they  were  becalmed.  Then 
came  a  storm.  As  usual  the  passengers  interested  Mr. 
Flint,  and  several  of  them  are  pictured  for  us.  There 
were  merchants,  "portly,  clever  personages,  who  loved 
champagne,  and  cent  per  cent."  They  were  as  much 
out  of  his  line  as  he  was  out  of  theirs.  There  were 
two  passengers,  however,  one  of  whom  would  put  her- 
self in  line  with  Mr.  Flint  and  the  other  that  he  in- 
stinctively felt  himself  to  be  in  line  with."^"^ 

The  first  was  a  rich  and  not  uncomely  widow,  who 
had  just  laid  aside  her  sables  for  the  loss  of  her  hus- 
band who  had  left  her,  after  only  a  few  hours  sickness, 
with  a  half  million  dollars  and  a  son  and  daughter. 

3**  Knickerbocker,  vol.  v,  279.  '^'  —  Idem,  279,  280. 


226  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

Mr.  Flint  says  of  this  lady :  "My  vanity  furnishes  me 
with  no  clue  to  explain  why  this  lady  honored  me  with 
a  particular  share  of  attention."  Not  only  the  lady 
but  her  two  children,  it  would  seem,  showed  the  be- 
nevolent looking  old  gentleman  "a  particular  share  of 
attention."  Mr.  Flint  was  fond  of  children  and  they 
of  him,  but  these  two,  as  well  as  their  mother  seem  to 
have  been  considerable  of  a  trial  to  him.  He  was 
even  moved  to  envy  the  departed  husband  and  father 
and  to  conclude  that  there  were  worse  evils  than  chol- 
era, and  that  the  exit  of  her  poor  husband  might  have 
been  to  him  a  merciful  release. 

Mr.  Flint  continues  about  this  woman  and  her  chil- 
dren: 

Unused  to  slaves,  this  lady  had  estimated  them  more  entirely 
the  passive  instruments  of  the  caprice  and  tyranny  of  their  mas- 
ter's family,  than  persons  who  had  been  born  and  reared  amidst 
the  indulgences  of  slavery.  The  consequence  was,  that  these  two 
children  .  .  .  were  precisely  the  most  annoying  and  mis- 
managed cubs,  that  ever  sinner  was  tormented  withal.  .  . 
They  were  ugly  urchins,  which  rendered  their  evil  manners  so 
much  the  more  unendurable.  But  what  capped  the  climax  of 
misery  of  being  greased  with  turkey  bones,  and  daubed  with 
eggs,  and  having  my  books  covered  with  ink,  and  my  laboriously- 
collected  herbarium  scattered  leaf  by  leaf  into  the  sea,  was,  that 
the  learned  Theban  of  a  mother  was  a  harranguer,  a  tedious 
preacheuse,  upon  the  subject  of  education.  She  had  read  a  whole 
library  of  the  modern  dull  books  upon  this  theme.  Most  pro- 
foundly was  she  imbued  with  the  theory  of  education ;  and  I  was 
placed  in  a  dilemma  of  bores,  between  the  preaching  of  the  mother, 
and  the  practice  of  the  children.  I  soon  gave  the  imps  to  under- 
stand, in  all  practicable  ways,  that  I  was  neither  their  step-father 
nor  their  slave.  If  pins  sometimes  happened  to  point  upwards 
through  my  dress,  when  my  persecutors  bounced  into  my  lap,  or 
if  they  sometimes  tumbled  over  my  legs,  when  racing  past  me 


TRAVELS  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES  227 

in  the  dark,  I  hope  the  charitable-minded  will  attribute  it  to 
accident,  though  I  fear  their  mother  did  not.^®*' 

When  the  storm  broke  upon  them,  the  third  day  of 
their  voyage,  Mr.  Flint  escaped  still  further  from  his 
young  scourges  and  their  lecturing  mother  by  means 
of  the  sea-sickness  which  overtook  them  and  him  alike. 
His  own  sickness  was  not  severe  and  it  was  then  that 
he  made  the  acquaintance  of  the  other  passenger  who 
interested  him.  He  does  not  give  her  name  but  says 
that  she  belonged  to  one  of  the  first  and  wealthiest 
families  in  Boston,  as  he  afterwards  learned.  She  had 
been  in  Cuba  for  her  health  and  was  returning  home 
in  strength.  He  admired  her  courage  during  the 
storm  and  discovered  that  it  came  from  a  reasonable 
view  of  the  situation  and  from  a  well  balanced  mind 
and  faith.'" 

After  a  sixteen  days'  voyage  they  were  in  Boston 
harbor,  viewing  the  city  of  "money  and  hills."  Mr. 
Flint  took  leave  of  his  young  friend  by  telling  her 
that  when  the  platonic  year  came  round,  after  thirty 
thousand  calendar  years  had  passed,  he  desired  to  be 
considered  her  declared  suitor. 

Mr.  Flint  went  to  the  Tremont  House,  spending 
only  a  few  days  in  Boston,  during  which  time  he  called 
upon  a  few  old  time  friends  and  made  arrangements 
for  the  continuing  of  his  travels.     While  he  says  he 

2^^  Knickerbocker,  vol.  v,  280.  There  is  a  perplexing  remark  made  by  Mr. 
Flint  in  telling  the  story  of  his  experiences  with  this  widow.  He  seems  to  say 
that  he  himself  is  a  widower.  Numerous  references  in  the  family  letters  as 
late  as  1839,  the  statements  made  by  Dr.  James  Flint  at  the  time  of  Flint's 
death  and  the  very  clear  and  positive  statements  of  the  family,  make  certain 
that  Mrs.  Flint  did  not  die  until  a  few  weeks  before  her  husband.  The  pas- 
sage here  referred  to  must  be  taken  as  a  rather  awkward  reference  to  his  long 
absence  from  home  and  to  his  traveling  alone. 

^^"'Knickerbocker,  vol.  v,  281,  282. 


228  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

had  no  purpose  there  "to  observe,  figure,  or  seek 
pleasure/'  yet  he  took  occasion  to  call  upon  his  young 
friend  of  the  good  ship  Union.  He  was  most  kindly 
and  hospitably  received -as  an  elder  brother  might 
be  by  a  younger  sister.  A  party  of  the  family  friends 
were  invited  in  to  meet  him.  He  was  introduced  by 
the  young  lady  to  her  friends,  "as  the  person  who  was 
to  stand  first  on  the  list  of  her  declared  lovers,  when 
she  should  re-visit  Boston,  after  thirty  thousand 
years,"  and  she  declared  to  him  that  his  chances  should 
be  predicated  on  changing  nothing  but  the  state  of  his 
health.  It  was  also  arranged  that  Mr.  Flint  should 
meet  some  of  these  friends  at  Buffalo  or  Niagara  Falls 
later  in  the  summer.^^^ 


3SS  This  brief  narrative  of  the  Cuban  visit  and  the  subsequent  voyage 
to  Boston  appears  in  the  April  number  of  the  Knickerbocker  for  1835,  as 
"Sketches  of  Travel,  Number  Two."  The  journey  could  not  have  ended  until 
about  the  end  of  March.  The  article  itself  must  have  been  written  in  Boston 
about  April  i.  That  it  appears  in  the  April  number  of  the  magazine  may- 
be accounted  for  by  the  habits  of  that  journal  of  appearing  late.  See  Knicker- 
bocker, vol.  vi,  580,  note. 


XV.     LOUISIANA  AND  THE  LAST  DAYS 

Dr.  James  Flint  says  of  Mr.  Flint's  removal  to  his 
earlier  home  in  the  south: 

In  1834,  '^6  went  to  the  "South"  to  remain  with  his  family 
in  Alexandria,  where  his  eldest  son  and  daughter  resided ;  the 
daughter  having  recently  married  an  eminent  advocate  and 
planter  of  that  place.  He  there  passed  the  concluding  years  of 
his  life  in  the  enjoyment  of  competence  and  leisure,  usually,  how- 
ever, spending  his  summers  in  New  England,  and  wrote  nothing 
excepting  a  Second  part  of  Recollections  of  the  Mississippi  Valley, 
the  manuscript  of  which  he  brought  with  him  on  his  last  visit 
to  friends  at  Salem,  Massachusetts,  where  he  died,  August  i6th, 
i840.3»» 

Very  little  is  known  of  the  course  of  Mr.  Flint's  life 
during  the  last  four  or  five  of  his  three  score  years. 
Such  as  we  have  is  gathered  from  a  few  letters  of  his 
family  and  friends.  These  do  not  furnish  a  continu- 
ous story. 

There  was  not  much  literary  work  performed  in 
this  period.  Besides  the  manuscript  for  the  second 
part  of  the  Recollections  Doctor  Flint  mentions  also 
that  his  cousin  left  revised  copies  of  all  of  his  principal 
works.  Doctor  Flint  thought  it  a  great  desideratum 
that  all  the  works  should  be  published  in  a  uniform 
edition,  and  improved  with  the  revisions  which  his 
friend  had  left.^^"     There  was  still  another  work  of 


•^^^  Encyclopedia  Americana:  Supplementary  Volume. 

390  _    JJgjji^ 


230  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

considerable  extent,  performed  probably  in  the  fall 
and  winter  of  1834.  This  was  the  series  of  eleven 
articles  on  "Sketches  of  the  Literature  of  the  United 
States,"  prepared  for  the  London  Athenaum.  Much 
of  the  material  is  taken  from  earlier  works  but  there  is 
some  new  matter  and  it  is  all  rearranged. 

Peabody  and  Company  of  the  Knickerbocker  had 
suggested  Mr.  Flint  to  the  London  people  as  a  suitable 
man  for  the  undertaking,  but  a  misunderstanding  had 
arisen  about  the  matter.  Peabody  and  Company  had 
asked  for  some  money  in  advance  in  order  to  aid  the 
proposed  work.  The  money  had  been  sent  but  the 
manuscript  was  not  furnished  either  by  Mr.  Flint  or 
Peabody  and  Company.  The  editors  of  the  London 
magazine  were  not  at  all  inclined  to  blame  Mr.  Flint, 
but  when  they  learned  that  he  had  gone  to  Louisiana 
and  not  furnished  the  promised  papers,  for  which 
they  had  advanced  money,  they  justly  felt  that  they 
had  been  victimized  by  some  one.  After  this  failure 
they  engaged  Nathaniel  Parker  Willis  for  the  work. 

Unexplained,  this  incident  looks  discreditable  to 
Mr.  Flint.  Even  so  careful  a  student  as  Professor 
Henry  A.  Beers,  in  his  Nathaniel  Parker  JVillis^^^ 
passes  the  matter  with  only  the  remark  that  Mr.  Flint 
failed  to  come  to  time  with  the  articles  he  had  agreed 
to  furnish  to  the  Athemeum.  In  the  Athenceum^ 
1835,'''  there  is  a  letter  of  Mr.  Flint  dated  at  Alex- 
andria, November  17,  1834,  written  to  Clark  and  Ed- 
son,  successors  of  Peabody  and  Company. 

I  have  just  received  a  letter  directed  to  Peabod)'  and  Co., 

391  Pages  216,  217.  3^-  No.  380,  105. 


LOUISIANA  AND  THE  LAST  DAYS  231 

late  of  the  Knickerbocker,  from  Mr. of  the  London  Athen- 

CEum,  saying  that  he  had  forwarded  an  order  in  my  favor  for 
£20,  in  pay  for  an  article  on  American  Literature,  which  he  un- 
derstood me  to  have  contracted  to  forward  to  that  Periodical.  A 
year  ago,  Mr.  Peabody  said  something  to  me  about  furnishing 
such  an  article,  and  I  expressed  my  willingness  to  do  it,  after 
which  I  heard  nothing  on  the  subject  until  I  recently  saw  my 
name  set  down  in  the  papers,  as  one  who  was  to  write  such  an 

article.     I  need  say  no  more  than  this  to  Mr.  ,  to  acquit 

myself  of  the  imputation,  of  having  received  pay  without  per- 
forming the  stipulated  services.  If  he  knew  me,  I  need  not  say 
even  this.  No  order  has  come  to  my  hand,  nor  did  I  stipulate 
to  furnish  manuscript  any  further  than  as  above  stated.  Have 
the  kindness  to  write  to  him  immediately,  for  I  would  not  be 
willing  to  remain  a  moment  under  the  suspicion  of  being  capable 
of  such  a  want  of  integrity,  as  would  be  implied  in  receiving 
compensation,  and  failing  to  return  quid  pro  quo. 

This  matter  is  best  explained  perhaps  by  the  bus- 
iness failure  of  Peabody  and  Company  sometime  in 
1834,  and  by  their  afterwards  returning  at  least  a  part 
of  the  £20  to  the  London  firm.^""  Mr.  Flint's  series 
of  articles  began  to  appear  in  the  July  fourth  number 
of  the  AthencBum,  1835,  ^^^  were  concluded  Novem- 
ber ninth,  of  that  year. 

Mr.  Flint  must  have  felt  when  he  returned  to  the 
south  in  1834,  that  his  work  was  almost  done.  His 
extensive  travels  after  this  time  were  not  on  account 
of  business,  but,  as  before  mentioned,  were  for  the  sake 
of  health.  He  was,  it  is  true,  only  fifty-five  years  of 
age.  But  most  of  these  years  had  been  marked  by 
sickness,  and  many  of  them  by  severe  labor  and  unu- 
sual exposure.     In  appearance  and  strength  he  was  old 

^^^  Atheneeum,  no.  375,  12,  note;  no.  380,  105. 


232  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

beyond  his  years.     In  1828,  at  the  New  Year  season, 
he  had  written : 

Fondly  I  thought,  that,  years  ere  this,  my  breast 
Would  cease  to  swell  with  joy  or  sorrovv.^^* 

Mr.  Flint  did  not  perform  any  of  the  duties  of  his 
early  profession  in  his  last  years.  His  son  James, 
writing  him  from  Harvard,  addressed  him  as  "Tim- 
othy Flint,  Esq."  Other  correspondents  still  used  the 
title  "Reverend."  Mr.  Flint  sometimes  seemed  to 
feel  himself  shut  off  from  the  great  world  in  which  he 
had  lived  so  actively.  There  is  a  fragment  of  a  let- 
ter preserved  in  the  Boston  Public  Library,  probably 
written  to  Reverend  Charles  Lowell,  and  during  these 
last  years,  which  shows  the  loneliness  of  the  man  and 
his  desire  to  keep  in  touch  with  early  and  far  distant 
friends.     He  says: 

Thus  I  have  poured  out  a  feminine  flood  of  gossip.  Let  me 
tempt  you  to  sin  in  the  same  way.  As  I  draw  myself  into  my 
shell,  abandoned  by  all  others,  let  me  not  be  forsaken  by  you. 
Give  me  your  history  in  terms  as  garrulous  as  mine.  Let  the 
record  of  our  kindness  run  on  till  death.  You  know  those  that 
I  do  and  ought  to  remember,  and  will  convey  to  them  my  affec- 
tionate salutation.     God  bless  you  and  yours.  T.  Flint. 

His  children  were  all  with  him.  Emeline,  his  eld- 
est daughter,  had  married  General  Thomas  in  1833. 
She  was  a  very  accomplished  woman,  strong  minded, 
but  not  imaginative  like  others  of  the  family.  For 
several  years  before  her  marriage  she  was  her  father's 
literary  companion.  She  had  aided  him  in  his  exten- 
sive translations  from  the  French,  such  as  the  Bio- 
graphie  Universelle  Classique.  He  speaks  several 
times  of  his  co-worker.      She  was  also,  as  Mr.  Flint 


394  Jf/fstern  Monthly  Review,  vol.   i,  529. 


LOUISIANA  AND  THE  LAST  DAYS  233 

was  not,  a  Spanish  scholar,  and  made  some  translations 
from  this  language  for  the  Western  Monthly  Review. 
She  was  the  second  wife  of  General  Thomas,  who  was 
a  man  of  much  force  and  prominence  in  his  section  of 
the  country.  He  had  extensive  business  interests  and 
was  an  attorney.  Soon  after  or  possibly  just  before 
the  death  of  her  father  and  mother,  Mrs.  Thomas 
planned  and  built  in  Alexandria,  what  has  been  known 
for  two  generations  as  the  Flint  Homestead.  It  was 
used  by  General  Banks  as  his  headquarters  when  his 
army  was  in  Alexandria  during  the  Civil  War.  It  is 
still  owned  and  highly  valued  by  the  family.^"" 

Micah  Peabody,  the  eldest  son,  had  married  Fran- 
ces Bullard,  a  niece  of  General  Thomas,  some  time  be- 
fore the  return  of  his  family  from  the  north.  He  had 
been  prosperous  as  an  attorney  and  planter,  leaving  an 
estate  at  the  time  of  his  death,  valued  at  one  hundred 
and  fifty  thousand  dollars.  Samuel  Swett  in  the  Har- 
vard Class  Book  for  the  Class  of  1800,  says  also  that 
this  large  estate  was  inherited  and  carried  on  by  Mr. 
Flint,  the  son  having  been  unmarried.  Both  of  these 
statements  are  inaccurate  according  to  the  fam- 
ily letters.  Mr.  Flint  and  his  children  together  in- 
herited Micah's  estate,  the  wife  and  children  of  the 
latter  having  died  before  he  did.  This  estate  was 
heavily  involved,  and  was  being  managed  by  Hubbard 
Flint,  while  his  younger  brother  was  a  minor  and 
studying  law  at  Harvard,  183 8-1 841.''"' 

Everything  indicates  that  Mr.  Flint  was  in  com- 

3«^  Family  letters  and  records,  for  the  most  part  in  possession  of  Mrs. 
Emeline  Flint  Seip,  Alexandria,  La.  Mrs.  Seip's  letters,  1907-1910,  have 
been  placed  in  Boston  Public  Library. 

39C  _  i^ejn^ 


234  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

fortable  circumstances  in  his  last  years.  Mr.  Gal- 
lagher remarks  that  his  Geography  and  History  was 
not  only  vastly  popular,  but  vastly  profitable  as 
well.^"^  He  had  a  house  of  his  own  across  the  river 
near  Alexandria,  and  opposite  his  son  Micah's  home 
at  that  place.  This  was  probably  in  the  pine  woods 
that  covered  the  hills  opposite  the  village.  The  house 
here  in  which  he  lived  is  still  standing.  He  operated 
a  farm  of  about  one  hundred  acres.  Old  account 
books  in  the  possession  of  the  family  show  his  pur- 
chases of  farm  and  family  supplies.  Mr.  Flint  had 
servants  which  his  grandchildren  think  he  owned,  but 
they  are  not  certain  on  this  point.^''*  Considering  his 
earlier  feelings  and  expressions  on  this  subject,  it 
would  seem  unlikely  that  he  ever  bought  or  owned  a 
slave. 

Mr.  Flint  also  owned  a  cottage  in  the  pine  hills  at 
Pineville,  two  or  three  miles  from  Alexandria,  where 
he  spent  his  summers.  The  location  is  still  known  to 
his  family  and  to  many  people  who  make  their 
home  in  the  region.  Trees  and  shrubs  which  he 
planted  are  today  reverenced  because  of  their  associa- 
tion with  the  man  whom  all  delight  to  honor.  "An- 
gel's Rest"  and  "Summerville"  are  named  in  the  fam- 
ily letters  as  rallying  places  for  the  long  hot  seasons, 
during  Mr.  Flint's  last  years.  Mr.  Flint  taught 
French  to  his  young  daughter,  Martha  Elizabeth, 
born  in  Cincinnati,  1828,  while  they  dwelt  in  their 
summer  Arcadia.  But  it  was  the  son  and  not  the  father 
who  was  doing  the  fishing  then.    Another  fragment  of 

3^^  Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.  iii,  37. 

398  See  letters  of  Emeline  Flint  Seip  and  Fredric  Seip,  and  especially  the 
latter's  letter  of  Jan.  20,  1910. 


LOUISIANA  AND  THE  LAST  DAYS  235 

the  letter  mentioned  above,  gives  us  a  picture  of  their 
life  in  the  pines: 

Yesterday  was  Sabbath  and  we  passed  the  day  in  a  general 
family  muster  and  ride.  But  to-morrow  alas!  We  move  into 
town  where  I  have  to  live.  You  all  have  had  to  undergo  a  double 
talkover- first  when  Micah  came,  and  since  on  my  return,  nor 
were  j'our  hospitality,  your  beautiful  [words  missing  from  man- 
uscript]. 

This   fragment  may   indicate   a   recent   trip   to  the 
north.^^"^ 

Mr.  Flint's  home  life  had  always  been  beautiful. 
This  fact  is  remarked  by  several  of  his  friends  and  it 
is  one  of  the  treasured  traditions  of  his  descendants. 
Mr.  Swett  says: 

His  affection  for  his  family  was  deep,  strong,  self-absorbing 
to  an  extent  that  we  would  not  dare  to  give  the  slightest  con- 
ception -  were  we  not  in  possession  of  facts  which  speak  louder 
than  words.  His  wife's  affection  is  betokened  by  the  fact  that 
his  word  to  her,  assuring  her  of  his  speedy  dissolution,  proved  to 
be  her  death  warrant.*"** 

In  the  w^inter  of  1836- 1837  ^  great  pleasure  came  to 
Mr.  Flint  through  the  visit  of  his  cousin,  Dr.  James 
Flint.  In  Doctor  Flint's  volume  of  verses,  the  fol- 
lowing are  found : 

Lines  written  at  sea  on  a  voyage  to  visit  and  spend  the  winter 
with  my  earliest  and  best  loved  friend,  Rev.  T.  Flint,  on  the 
banks  of  the  Red  River,  for  the  recovery  of  my  health.  At  Sea, 
on  board  the  Saxon,  Dec,  1836. 

Lo !  my  heart's  nearest  brother,  more  near  than  by  blood, 
I  come  on  the  waves  of  the  dark  rolling  flood. 
And  I  smile  at  the  peril,  nor  shrink  from  the  pain  - 
To  meet  thee,  my  brother,  on  earth  once  again. 


399  Family  letters.     See  also  Appendix  A. 
♦°°  The  Christian  Register,  vol.  xix,  138. 


236  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

I  come  with  my  brother  once  more  to  review, 

Our  sweet  spring  time  when  hope  and  her  visions  were  new, 

To  live  o'er  again  our  best  days  of  the  past. 

And  communing  of  heaven,  to  prepare  for  the  last. 

Through  thirty-six  lines  like  the  above,  Doctor 
Flint  expresses  his  hopes  for  pleasure  and  health.  He 
is  prepared,  and  half  expects  to  leave  his  body  in  the 
soil  where  he  supposes  his  friend  will  lay  his  dust, 
little  knowing  that  they  will  lie  together  in  their 
native  soil  and  in  a  beautiful  cemetery  which  he  is 
soon  to  consecrate  with  other  verses.^"^ 

In  this  same  year,  Mr.  Flint  was  called  upon  to 
suffer  the  loss  of  his  oldest  son,  September  15,  1837. 
Micah  w^as  but  thirty-four  years  of  age  when  he  was 
carried  away  by  one  of  the  southern  fevers.  This  son 
had  been  the  pride  and  hope  of  his  parents.  When 
but  twelve  years  of  age  he  had  written  a  poem,  which, 
it  is  said,  was  printed  by  the  Edinburgh  Review  and 
highly  complimented  by  that  magazine.  His  Hun- 
ter and  Other  Poems  was  published  by  the  firm  that 
issued  the  Recollections  and  at  the  same  time.  Criti- 
cisms of  his  son's  book,  Mr.  Flint  took  as  seriously  as 
he  did  those  of  his  own  works.  He  had  high  hopes 
for  Micah's  development  as  a  poet,  and  often  shows 
this  hope  in  his  writings.  The  family  say  now,  that 
he  was  much  disappointed  that  Micah  gave  so  much 
time  to  ''negroes  and  cotton"- to  quote  Micah's  own 
remark  when  he  returned  to  his  plantation  from  a 
visit  to  his  parents  in  Cincinnati.""'  Mr.  Flint 
worked  many  of  his  son's  poems  into  his  stories,  espe- 
cially into  the  Shoshonee  Valley.    They  are  found  also 

*°i  Flint,  James.     Verses  on  Many  Occasions,  99,  100,  171. 
^'^^  Knickerbocker,  vol.  iii,  119. 


LOUISIANA  AND  THE  LAST  DAYS 237 

in  several  numbers  of  the  Review  and  also  in  the 
Knickerbocker.  These  poems  received  many  favor- 
able notices  from  the  critics  of  the  period.  That  such 
a  son  as  this  should  be  stricken  down  and  at  so  early  an 
age,  and  soon  after  the  death  of  the  wife  and  two  little 
sons,  Micah  Jr.  and  James  Jr.,  would  be  the  heaviest 
loss  that  Mr.  Flint  ever  met  with  in  his  family. 
Though  the  father  did  not  allow  himself  to  be  hon- 
ored with  the  title  of  the  "sacred  office,"  in  this  hour 
of  his  deepest  grief,  he  rose  up  as  the  priest  of  his  own 
house,  and  conducted  over  the  body  of  his  first  born, 
the  last  sad  rites  of  the  Christian  Church.  Micah's 
body  was  buried  in  what  is  now  known  as  the  old 
Flint  graveyard  across  the  river  from  Alexandria, 
and  where  now  rests  the  dust  of  most  of  Mr.  Flint's 
children  and  grandchildren,  and  that  of  his  beloved 
wife.  Here  together  they  await  the  general  resurrec- 
tion in  the  last  day,  when  again  the  family  circle  may 
be  complete,  though  one  grave  is  in  distant  Salem,  an- 
other in  Galveston,  Texas,  and  one,  a  little  one,  upon 
the  shifting  banks  of  the  Great  River.*"^ 

Micah's  plantation  was  at  Cheneyville,  twenty-five 
or  thirty  miles  from  Alexandria.  He  called  this 
place  "Lunenburg,"  a  name  which  it  still  bears.  His 
home  is  yet  standing  at  this  place,  and  many  of  his  for- 
mer slaves  proudly  bear  his  name.  He  had  a  home 
also  in  Alexandria.  His  sister,  Emeline  Thomas, 
wrote  of  his  death : 

It  was  singularly  magnanimous  and  calm.  I  have  witnessed 
the  departure  of  no  one  who  seemed  to  have  so  entirely  triumphed 
^"3  Pamily  letters  and  records.  See  the  Seip  Letters,  Boston  Public  Library. 


238  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

over  the  fear  of  death.     Until  a  few  minutes  before  his  last 
breath,  he  occupied  himself  in  sending  messages  to  his  friends. ■*"* 

In  1839  we  have  another  glimpse  of  Mr.  Flint  and 
his  family  in  the  woods.  We  are  glad  to  know  that 
they  "are  well."  Early  in  the  spring  of  1839,  he 
made  a  visit  to  New  England  and  returned  before  the 
first  of  July."^  Throughout  his  southern  residence, 
it  was  the  sultry  weather  of  March  that  caused  Mr. 
Flint  the  most  trouble.  It  was  this  period  that  he 
aimed  to  spend  at  the  north.  How  often  he  made  this 
long  journey  during  his  last  six  years  we  do  not  know, 
but  it  must  have  been  several  times.  He  knew  how  to 
travel  comfortably.  He  thought  the  time  would  soon 
come  when  families  would  make  the  trip  from  the 
south  to  the  north  and  back  in  season,  enjoying  and 
employing  themselves  in  a  domestic  and  social  way 
on  the  steam  and  canal  boats,  much  as  they  might  do 
at  home.  He,  himself,  could  be  at  home  in  almost  any 
surroundings.  He  could  isolate  himself  for  thought 
or  work  when  and  where  he  would.  He  is  said  to 
have  translated  the  Biographie  Universelle  in  a  room 
where  others  were  talking  and  working.**"' 

While  on  his  northern  trip  in  1839,  Mr.  Flint 
caught  a  severe  cold,  and  was  ill  some  time  after  his 
return  home.  On  this  visit  at  the  north  he  had  the 
added  pleasure  of  seeing  his  son  James  Timothy  at 
Cambridge  and  also  the  daughter  of  General  Thomas 
who  was  at  school  in  that  section.  James  went  home 
in  1839,  taking  with  him,  doubtless,  as  he  was  bidden 
in  the  home  letters,  "a  sewing  basket  and  water  colors 
for  little  sister  Martha." 

404  Family  letters  and  records.  "^"^  Encyclopedia  Brittan'ica. 

405  _  Itlgjji, 


LOUISIANA  AND  THE  LAST  DAYS  239 

Early  in  May  of  1840,  James  was  still  at  home,  and 
accompanied  his  father  on  the  steamer  to  Natchez,  as 
he  started  for  the  north.  It  was  much  later  than  Mr. 
Flint  was  in  the  habit  of  making  this  trip.  It  does 
not  seem  that  he  was  compelled  to  go  on  account  of  his 
health,  though  he  was  not  well.  He  had  it  in  mind, 
of  course,  to  make  a  visit,  and  perhaps  chiefly,  to 
arrange  for  the  publication  of  the  second  part  of  the 
Recollections  which  he  had  with  him.  The  revision 
of  his  other  works  was  also  completed  *°^  and  he  doubt- 
less hoped  to  arrange  for  their  publication. 

At  Natchez  they  were  waiting  for  a  steamer  which 
should  take  Mr.  Flint  up  the  river,  when  they  were 
overtaken  by  a  tornado.  Mr.  Venable  says  of  this 
storm : 

At  one  o'clock  of  the  sultry  afternoon  of  Thursday,  May  7, 
a  furious  storm  sweeps  along  the  river,  whirls  the  shipping  to 
destruction,  tears  the  city.  "Never,  never,  never  was  there  such 
desolation  and  ruin,"  was  the  word  of  the  Natchez  Courier  next 
day.  The  loss  of  property  was  immense,  and  not  fewer  than 
four  hundred  people  were  killed.  .  .  The  Natchez  Free 
Trader  mentioned  that  among  those  who  were  taken  out  alive, 
were  "Timothy  Flint,  the  historian  and  geographer,  and  his  son 
from  Natchitoches,  Louisiana."  *°^ 

In  one  of  the  last  letters  that  he  ever  wrote,  Mr. 
Flint  tells  of  this  experience.  The  letter  was  written 
from  North  Reading,  and  probably  to  his  classmate, 
Samuel  Swett.  At  any  rate,  the  latter  included  it  in 
the  article  on  the  death  of  his  friend  in  the  Christian 
Register.  Only  a  part  of  the  letter  was  used  and  it 
is  as  follows : 

*^''  Encyclopedia  Americana:  Supplementary  Volume. 
408  Venable,  William  H.     Beginnings  of  Literary  Culture  in  the  Ohio 
Valley,  360. 


240  TLVIOTHY    FLINT 

The  morning  preceding  the  storm  had  been  excessively  sultry. 
The  sky  was  overcast  rather,  as  it  appeared,  with  a  sort  of  dusty 
haze  than  thick  clouds  -  and  the  sky  from  nine  to  one  was  a 
continual  rumble  of  a  hundred  low  thunders  all  melting  into  each 
other,  and  no  rain  fell.  At  half  after  one,  there  sat  at  the  hotel 
table,  I  suppose,  fifty  guests.  The  thunder  had  wnthin  a  few 
minutes  become  severe,  and  the  darkness  so  great  as  to  require 
candles.  But  these  circumstances  are  not  apt  in  that  climate  to 
create  alarm,  I  finished  a  hasty  dinner  and  went  through  a 
reading  room,  and  a  beautiful  bar-room  to  the  front  door  looking 
up  the  street,  for  it  was  Natchez  under  the  hill.  I  saw  a  ter- 
rific looking  black  cloud,  as  though  a  well  defined  belt  of  black 
broad  cloth,  seeming  a  mile  and  a  half  wide,  shooting  up  the  river 
bluff  with  fearful  velocity.  At  the  end  it  poured  out  dark 
wreaths,  resembling  those  of  the  steam-boat  pipe.  I  ran  to  the 
reading  room  for  James,  bidding  him  take  my  arm  and  follow 
me  into  the  street.  But  as  we  made  for  the  front  door,  the  win- 
dows and  doors  blew  in.  The  boats  were  seen  dashing  into  the 
river,  and  the  air  was  black  and  full  of  flying  fragments.  There 
was  a  general  rush  for  the  front  door.  The  rush  closed  the 
passage,  and  kickings,  fighting,  and  cursing  ensued.  Part  were 
trampled  under  foot,  and  part,  such  as  James  and  I,  thrown 
over  their  heads.  They,  fortunately  for  us,  threw  us  and  three 
more  into  a  place,  where  we  were  destined  to  be  saved.  It  was 
between  the  bar  room  and  the  reading  room,  I  felt  the  pillars 
reel,  seized  one  of  them,  and  expected  the  next  moment  to  have 
all  my  maladies  effectually  cured.  The  next  moment  every 
thing  came  down  with  a  crash  like  the  blow  of  a  hammer,  and 
the  w^hole  pile  chimneys  and  all  were  packed  as  closely  as  if  they 
had  been  taken  down  and  piled.  Water  poured  upon  us  like  a 
torrent,  and  we  were  as  dark  as  Eg\'pt.  James  had  been 
separated  from  me.  I  found  myself  alive  though  much  bruised 
and  crushed,  and  a  nail  had  gone  through  my  hat  and  grazed 
my  temple,  so  as  to  cause  some  bleeding.  My  first  word  was 
for  "James!  James!  are  you  alive?"  The  answer  was,  "I  am. 
Are  you  living,  Father?"  We  were  saved  by  the  arching  of  two 
or  three  beams,  that  resisted  all  that  came  upon  them.  He 
crawled  through  the  mud  and  got  hold  of  my  hand.     The  tim- 


LOUISIANA  AND  THE  LAST  DAYS  241 

bers  gave  us  four  inches.  After  being  there,  perhaps,  half  an 
hour,  we  were  extricated.  The  town  under  the  hill,  boats  and 
all,  were  a  wreck  -  in  fact,  the  latter  all  sunk  and  gone.  Many 
bodies  were  dug  from  our  house,  and  the  whole  spectacle  was  one 
of  sickening  horror.  I  was  manj^  hours  covered  with  mud,  and 
under  a  drenching  rain,  before  I  could  recover  anj'  clothes  or  get 
a  shelter.  The  crown  of  James's  hat  was  cut  from  his  head, 
just  grazing  the  top  of  the  skull.  He  returned  home,  after 
seeing  me  on  an  upcountry  boat.  The  season  had  been  the  warm- 
est ever  known,  and  wc  had  had  two  months  of  high  summer. 
The  weather  turned  very  cold,  the  night  I  began  to  ascend  the 
river,  and  my  long  drenching  and  exposure,  with  my  previous 
sickness,  gave  me  severe  chills.  They  followed  me  all  the  way 
here,  and  contributed,  I  have  no  doubt,  to  my  present  condition. 
I  had  not  thought  when  I  began,  that  I  could  scrawl  so  much. 
Take  it,  not  for  what  it  is  worth,  but  for  what  it  has  cost  me. 
You  will,  probably,  be  one  of  my  last  correspondents.  At  any 
rate,  I  can  only  loose  the  memory  of  your  kindness  to  me  and 
mine  with  life.  I  am,  dear  sir,  gratefully  and  affectionately 
yours,  Timothy  Flint.*°* 

This  letter  was  written  from  the  home  of  his 
brother,  Peter  Flint.  It  was  not  at  the  house  of  their 
birth  but  a  mile  or  so  to  the  west  of  the  village  of 
North  Reading,  and  near  the  place  where  the  remains 
of  their  father  and  mother  were  probably  buried.  In 
this  home  was  a  little  granddaughter  whose  duty  and 
privilege  it  was  to  comb  and  brush  the  silver  hair  of 
her  great  uncle,  and  who  thirty-four  years  later,  when 
WTiting  a  letter  to  the  almost  unknown  cousins  in  the 
south,  was  proud  to  tell  them  how  she  cherished  the 
memory  of  Reverend  Timothy  Flint,  and  this  child- 
hood ministry  to  the  dying  man."'"* 

*03  The  C/iristia?!  Register,  vol.  xix,  138,  139. 

*"5  Letter  of  C.  A.  Clark,  North  Reading,  Mass.,  July  26,  1874,  in  pos- 
session of  Mrs.  Seip. 


242  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

His  disease,  says  the  Harvard  Class  Book  for  the 
Class  of  jSoo,  was  biliousness.  The  cemetery  rec- 
ords give  liver  complaint  as  the  cause  of  his  death. 
He  lingered  for  six  or  seven  weeks  after  he  reached 
his  brother's  home,  in  a  very  feeble  state,  hardly  ex- 
pecting to  live  from  one  day  to  another. 

Of  the  last  hours,  Samuel  Swett  says  in  the  Chris- 
tian Register: 

The  last  heavenly  messenger  who  summoned  him  to  a  better 
and  happier  world,  he  met  with  the  resolution  of  a  philosopher, 
the  resignation,  hope  and  confidence  of  a  Christian.  He  says  in 
one  of  his  last  letters:  "Submission  is  my  wisdom  as  well  as  my 
dut)',  and  I  am  thankful  I  feel  it  in  all  its  comfort."  *^^ 

A  notice  of  the  death  of  Mr.  Flint,  written  in  all 
probability  by  Dr.  James  Flint,  appeared  in  the  Salem 
papers*'"  as  follows: 

Died,  on  Tuesday  evening  last,  in  Reading,  Mass.,  at  the 
residence  of  his  brother,  of  a  lingering  and  painful  disorder, 
Timothy  Flint,  aged  6o,  well  known  in  America,  and  on  the 
other  side  of  the  Atlantic,  as  the  author  of  various  works,  that 
have  given  him  a  rank  among  the  most  distinguished  writers  of 
the  country.  Of  a  genius  highly  imaginative  and  poetical,  he 
united  with  a  vigorous  intellect  and  discriminating  judgment,  a 
quick  sensibility  and  warm  affections,  a  vivid  perception  and 
enjoyment,  a  deep  felt  and  ever  grateful  recognition  of  the  author, 
of  the  beautiful,  grand  and  lovely  in  nature,  of  the  true  and 
good,  the  elevated  and  pure,  the  brilliant  and  divinely  gifted  in 
human  endowment  and  character;  and  possessing  a  rare  facility 
and  power  of  embodying  in  glowing  and  appropriate  language 
his  impressions  of  the  outward,  and  what  he  conceived  and  felt 
'  of  the  inward  and  spiritual  world.  During  the  brief  period  of 
seven  or  eight  years,  in  which  he  exercised  his  talents  as  an 
author,  he  wrote  with  a  fecundity  and  frequency  of  publication 
scarcely  surpassed  by  the  prolific  author  of  the  Waverley  novels. 

411  The  Christian  Register,  vol.  xix,  138. 

412  Salem  Gazette,  Aug.  21,  1840.     Essex  Register,  Aug.  24,  1840. 


LOUISIANA  AND  THE  LAST  DAYS  243 

His  Recollections  of  ten  years  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi, 
the  work  by  which  he  was  first  known  to  the  public  as  an  author, 
possesses  all  the  interest  of  a  romance,  joined  with  the  feeling 
that  we  are  reading  a  true  narrative  of  the  author's  actual  expe- 
rience, of  what  he  saw  and  felt,  in  the  adventures  and  fortunes 
therein  recorded,  containing  the  most  graphic  and  faithful  paint- 
ings of  the  scenery  and  physical  aspect  of  the  regions  he  describes. 
^^  His  Geography  and  History  of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  etc.,  is  a 
work  of  great  value,  containing  the  best  general  account  of  that 
vast  and  fertile  country,  that  has  yet  been  given  to  the  public. 
His  novels  contain  scenes  and  descriptions  of  surpassing  beauty 
and  interest.  Some  of  the  finest  productions  of  his  pen  are  to 
be  found  in  the  Western  Monthly  Review,  which  he  sustained 
almost  alone  for  three  years.  Many  beautiful  Tales  also  were 
furnished  by  him  for  the  different  annuals  and  periodicals  of  the 
time. 

He  left  his  residence  on  Red  River,  La.,  last  May,  in  feeble 
health,  hoping  to  derive  benefit  from  the  bracing  air  of  the  north. 
He  came  to  his  native  place,  where  his  disorder  soon  assumed 
symptoms  of  a  speedy  and  fatal  termination.  He  wrote  his 
family,  that  before  they  received  his  letter  he  should  be  no  longer 
among  the  living;  which  intelligence  was  so  taken  to  heart  by 
Mrs.  Flint,  that  she  was  seized  with  a  fever,  and  died  just  four 
weeks  to  a  day  before  her  husband.  Their  spirits,  we  may  hope, 
have  met  in  the  regions  of  the  blessed,  to  know  no  more  separa- 
tion or  sorrow  forever.*^^ 

Four  days  later,  interment  took  place  in  the  new 
Harmony  Grove  Cemetery  at  Salem.  It  was  a  beau- 
tiful spot,  such  as  Mr.  Flint  loved  at  Mount  Auburn 
in  Boston.  Doctor  Flint  had  been  one  of  the  founders 
of  the  cemetery,  and  he  and  James  Timothy  bought  a 

*^3  One  of  the  family  traditions  records  that  after  the  death  of  his  mother, 
James  Timothy  Flint  went  to  the  bedside  of  his  father  in  North  Reading. 
We  are  told  that  the  dying  man  asked  continually  for  his  wife  and  that  the 
son  dared  not  tell  him  that  she  had  gone  on  before  lest  the  news  should  be 
the  call  that  would  bid  him  go,  even  as  the  word  that  had  gone  to  Mrs. 
Flint  had  been  the  occasion  of  her  death.  See  Mrs.  Seip's  letter,  Jan.  30,  19 10. 


244  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

lot  which  was  used  for  the  first  time  when  the  friend 
and  father  was  buried  in  it/''  Fifteen  years  later  it  re- 
ceived the  body  of  Dr.  James  Flint,  which  rests  just 
beside  that  of  his  "more  than  brother."  Several 
members  of  Doctor  Flint's  family  are  buried  here  also, 
but  the  circle  was  not  completed  until  about  a  year 
ago,  when  the  last  child  of  Doctor  Flint,  Miss  Amelia 
G.  Flint,  ninety-two  years  of  age,  was  buried  there. 
The  graves  of  the  two  friends  occupy  the  center  of  the 
lot.  ''David  and  Jonathan"  are  united  in  death  as 
they  were  in  life. 

Over  the  grave  of  Mr.  Flint  was  erected  a  simple 
monument,  eight  or  nine  feet  in  height,  with  the  fol- 
lowing inscription  wTitten  by  Doctor  Flint."^ 

REV.  TIMOTHY  FLINT 

Whose  writings  have  won  for  him  deserved 

celebrity,  was  born  in  Reading,  Mass.,  1780, 

where  he  died  on  a  visit  from  the  South, 

August  16,  1840,  aged  60. 

He  painted  on  his  glowing  page, 
The  peerless  valley  of  the  West ; 

That  shall  in  every  coming  age, 
His  genius  and  his  toils  attest. 


*i*  Harmony  Grove  Cemeter}-  Records  (Salem).  Both  Dr.  James  Flint 
and  Timothy  Flint  were  much  interested  in  the  beautifying  of  burial  places. 
The  latter  once  visited  Mount  Auburn  Cemeterj-,  Boston,  and  greatly  enjo\ed 
its  beaut\-  and  care.  As  he  wandered  over  it  with  a  friend,  some  of  its  hill- 
side views  made  him  imagine  the  pines  saying: 

"Oh,  lay  me  in  the  spot  where  the  sunbeams  rest, 
When  they  promise  a  glorious  morrow;" 

-Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  257,  258. 

*i^  An  exact  copy  of  this  inscription  is  preserved  in  Doctor  Flint's  Verses 

on  Many  Occasions.     Also  in  a  manuscript  copy  in  Boston  Public  Library 

which  had  been  sent  to  Mrs.  Coffin  by  Doctor  Flint  in  1841,  just  as  it  had 

been   "prepared  by  his  bereaved   and  still   loving  kinsman   and  friend." 


"rrMOTHY  Flint's  Monument,  Harmony  GROvn: 
Cfmftkry,    Sai.rm,    Massachusetts 


LOUISIANA  AND  THE  LAST  DAYS  247 


But  wouldst  thou,  gentle  pilgrim,  know 
What  worth,  what  love  endeared  the  man? 

This  the  lone  hearts  that  miss  him,  show 
Better  than  storied  marble  can. 


XVI.  LITERARY  TRAITS  AND  ESTIMATES 

Mr.  Flint  did  not  expect  to  win  an  enduring  fame 
by  means  of  his  writings.  He  knew  too  well  the  fate 
of  the  many  masterful  minds  and  true  geniuses,  of  his 
own  and  other  days,  to  hope  that  he  would  escape  the 
almost  universal  doom  of  being  soon  forgotten.  On 
this  point  he  moralizes  when  he  is  reviewing  the  nov- 
els of  Charles  Brockden  Brown.*'"  Mr.  Flint  felt 
himself  in  close  sympathy  w4th  Mr.  Brown  at  many 
points.  They  were  alike  "blighted  by  the  mildews  of 
disease  almost  from  birth."  Mr.  Brown,  too,  was 
compelled  to  write  for  his  daily  bread,  incessantly 
until  his  fragile  frame  was  worn  out.  He  had  reached 
what  Flint  held  as  his  ideal :  deep  feeling,  powerful 
moral  painting,  laying  open  the  recesses  of  the  heart. 

While  Timothy  Flint  did  not  think  he  would  be 
remembered  as  a  litterateur,  he  thought  he  was  pre- 
serving matters  of  interest  for  the  future  historian. 
In  the  advertisement  to  the  Western  Monthly  2?^- 
view*^''  he  says: 

We  can  easily  enjoy  in  anticipation,  the  eagerness,  with  which 
the  future  historian  will  repair  to  them,  as  a  synopsis,  of  most 
of  what  has  been  said,  and  written,  in  the  Western  Country, 
touching  its  own  natural,  moral,  and  civil  history. 

'*'*^  American  novelist,  1771-1810.     See  Flint's  article  in  tVestern  Monthly 
Revienv,  vol.  i,  483-494- 
*i^  Vol.  i,  p.  iii. 


250  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

Professor  Henry  A.  Beers  ^"*  says : 

That  Flint  had  a  glimmering  sense  of  what  fiction  might  some 
day  accomplish  as  a  real  contribution  to  sociology,  is  indicated 
on  page  148,  volume  ii,  of  Arthur  Clenning:  "A  fair  history 
of  the  society  of  a  country  village  [would  be  a  thousand  times 
more  interesting  than  a  novel ;  and  besides  the  interest  of  the 
picture,  it  would  be  one  of  the  most  useful  views  of  society  that 
can  be  presented.  But  taste  has  not  yet  matured  sufficiently  to 
relish  such  a  picture,  and,  perhaps,  the  historian  does  not  yet 
exist  who  has  the  requisite  discrimination  and  felicity  to  draw 
it!] 

In  George  Mason  the  moral  purpose  is  always  in 
evidence  often  to  the  detriment  of  art  in  the  story.  He 
often  stops  to  point  out  the  moral,  to  preach  and  to 
exhort.  The  "genuine  American"  motto,  *'Don't  give 
up  the  ship,"  is  often  brought  in  though  it  must  be 
dragged  in  bodily.     It  is  in  this  book  that  he  says : 

I  write  for  the  young,  the  poor,  and  the  desolate;  and  the 
moral  maxim  which  I  wish  to  inculcate  is,  that  we  ought  never 
to  despond  either  in  our  religious  or  our  temporal  trials. 

In  this  work  he  is  concerned  with  "the  short  and 
simple  annals  of  the  poor"  because  nine  in  ten  of  the 
human  race  are  of  that  class."" 

But  Mr.  Flint  is  not  always  or  only  utilitarian  in 
his  writings.  He  values  literature  for  its  civilizing 
and  ennobling  powers.  It  is  worthy  of  culture 
simply  as  an  art.  One  of  his  chief  regrets  expressed 
in  a  number  of  articles  on  the  subject  and  notably  in 
the  series  published  in  the  Athetiaum,'^^^  is,  that  liter- 
ature is  in  such  a  low  state  in  the  country.     He  re- 

*^^  Letter  of  Henn-  A.  Beers,  Dec.  12,  1907,  in  Library  of  Harvard  Uni- 
versit>'. 

^i**  Flint,  Timothy.     George  Mason,  3,  4. 
420  Volume  for  1835. 


LITERARY  TRAITS  AND  ESTIMATES         251 

grets  that  people  are  so  absorbed  in  business  and  poli- 
tics, that  there  is  almost  no  time  left  for  encouraging 
the  high  and  necessary  art  of  the  literary  worker.  He 
lamented  the  lack  of  taste  in  the  reading  public,  and 
all  that  tends  to  degrade  it  among  publishers  and  re- 
viewers. He  thought  one  of  the  greatest  weaknesses 
of  the  American  literary  world  was  that  it  had  not  cut 
loose  from  its  English  models  and  bid  defiance  to  the 
pride  and  conceit  of  the  English  world  of  letters.  At 
this  point  he  shows,  as  on  many  other  occasions,  his 
dislike  of  things  English.  He  would  turn  from  Eng- 
land to  the  continent  for  ideals  and  inspiration.  For 
himself,  he  goes  to  the  French  but  he  sees  that  Ger- 
many is  to  be,  and  already  is,  the  leader  in  the  search 
for  truth  and  in  cosmopolitan  scholarship.*'^  He  was 
much  interested  in,  and  hopeful  concerning,  the  be- 
ginning that  was  being  made  by  a  little  group  of  Har- 
vard men  to  introduce  the  German  thought  and  liter- 
ature into  the  United  States.  It  promised  well  for  a 
new  and  worthy  school  in  America. 
Mr.  Griswold  says: 

Flint  was  compelled  to  write  constantly  and  rapidly,  and  to 
print  without  revision. *-- 

This  may  well  be  true.  His  letters  are  as  accurate 
as  his  printed  page.  And  lack  of  finish  is  one  of  the 
greatest  evils  of  the  page,  and  the  story  as  well.  There 
are  so  many  obvious  faults,  in  plot,  sentences,  and  even 
in  use  of  words,  that  one  often  regrets  that  he  did  not 
spend  more  time  in  the  revising  of  his  work.  At  such 
times  new  regrets  arise,  that  the  revised  copies  of  his 


1 


*-^  f Western  Monthly  Rfvieiv,  vol.   iii,  267,  278. 

*22  Griswold,  Rufus  W.     Prose  IVriters  of  America,  153. 


TLMOTHY    FLINT 


principal  works  which  Doctor  Flint  mentions,"'^  are 
not  thus  far  discovered. 

Of  one  common  fault,  Mr.  Flint  pleads  that  he  is 
not  guilty  in  any  way  that  it  is  possible  to  avoid,  that 
of  deliberately  emptying  other  people's  books  into 
his  own.  No  one  is  disposed  to  charge  him  with  this 
fault.  He  was  quite  free,  however,  to  pour  his  own 
books  into  each  other.  This  is  notably  true  in  the 
Geography  and  History  as  depending  on  long  pass- 
ages from  the  Recollections.  The  Indian  Wars  is  lit- 
tle more  than  a  compilation  from  the  Geography  and 
History.  Many  paragraphs  and  pages  in  succession 
are  carried  over  without  other  changes  than  those 
made  by  the  printer.  This  is  not  true  in  the  case  of 
Daniel  Boone.  The  same  scenes  and  incidents  which 
occur  in  the  earlier  work  are  here  entirely  rewritten. 
In  his  stories  he  often  takes  a  page  or  two  of  descrip- 
tion, or  an  incident,  from  the  inexhaustible  Geog- 
raphy and  History,  and  this  work  supplies  material 
also  for  the  Review.  He  makes  a  generous  use  of  his 
son  Micah's  poetry  in  his  stories,  notably  in  the  Sho- 
shonee  Valley.  There  is  in  this  story  a  curious  adap- 
tation of  one  of  Micah's  poems.  "Frederick"  stand- 
ing on  the  Chinese  shore  and  gazing  out  into  the  sea 
where  a  few  leagues  away  the  beloved  "Jessy"  had 
disappeared  into  the  depths,  recites  a  few  lines  that 
have  a  familiar  sound  for  they  recall  the  lines  of  Mi- 
cah  P.  Flint.  In  truth  three  verses  of  Micah's  "Lines, 
on  Passing  the  Grave  of  my  Sister"  have  been  adapted 
by  the  father  and  put  into  Frederick's  mouth. *^* 

*-^  Encyclopedia  Americana:  Supplementary  Volume. 
424  Flint,  Timothy.     Shoshonee   Valley,   vol.   ii,   262;    JVesiern  Monthly 
Review,  vol.  i,  652,  653. 


LITERARY  TRAITS  AND  ESTIMATES         253 

Dullness  never  appeared  to  Mr.  Flint  as  dignity. 
He  chose  always  the  language  of  the  heart.  To  be 
prosy  or  dull  seemed  to  him  almost  a  sin  to  be  ranked 
with  dishonesty.  The  Britannica  s^Lys:  "His  style 
was  vivid,  plain,  forcible,  and  his  matter  always  in- 
teresting." Of  his  style  in  writing  and  speaking  Mr. 
Flint  says  upon  one  occasion,  "We  admit  ourselves, 
that  we  have  a  pernicious  attachment  to  ornamented 
speech." ''^^ 

Professor  Henry  A.  Beers,  when  writing  his  life  of 
Nathaniel  Parker  Willis,  about  1885,*'"  had  occasion 
to  examine  Mr.  Flint's  articles  on  "Sketches  of  the 
Literature  of  the  United  States,"  in  the  Athenceum  in 
1835,  as  they  were  related  to  similar  articles  of  Mr. 
Willis  published  in  the  same  volume  of  the  AthencBiim. 
About  Mr.  Flint's  articles,  Professor  Beers  remarks 
that  they  amply  made  up  in  heaviness  any  want  of 
ballast  in  Willis.  He  thought  them  full  of  general 
views  which  if  not  correct,  were  harmless  because  un- 
readable. Professor  Beers  says  of  Arthur  denning^ 
however,  that  it  is  by  no  means  without  merit: 

It  has  imagination  and  enough  imaginative  art  to  secure 
interest.  Ecce  Signum  - 1  have  read  it  through,  and  so  have 
two  other  members  of  my  family  -  a  feat  not  always  possible  in 
the  case  of  a  modern  novel  of  much  greater  pretensions.*^'^ 

This  feat  is  the  more  striking  when  it  is  known  that 
it  was  accomplished  in  two  days'  time,  and  the  story 
has  about  the  same  number  of  words  as  the  average 
modern  novel. 

Mr.  Venable  thinks  there  was  never  a  more  delight- 

*-^  JVestern  Monthly  Revieia,  vol,   i,  749. 

*28  Beers,  Henry  A.     Nathaniel  Parker  Willis,  217. 

*27  Letter,  Dec.  12,  1907. 


254  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

ful  book  of  the  kind  written  than  the  Recollections. 
He  says : 

A  more  original  book  it  would  be  impossible  to  conceive  of. 
In  fact,  it  seems  not  to  be  a  book,  but  a  familiar  talk  -  a  picture 
from  nature;  a  man  revealing  himself  to  the  sympathetic  world 
with  unconscious  and  complete  candor,  confidence  and  enthu- 
siasm.*-* 

He  thinks  the  novels,  especially  Francis  Berrian^ 
racy  and  readable  to  this  day. 

Mr.  Gallagher  thought  this  first  novel  of  Mr. 
Flint  worth,  for  its  descriptions  alone,  a  score  of  the 
English  novels  that  were  being  reprinted  every  day  in 
this  country.  The  fact  that  Mr.  Gallagher  wrote 
about  Mr.  Flint  and  his  work  while  Mr.  Flint  still 
lived  in  Cincinnati,  and  the  considerable  measure  of 
success  that  he  himself  had  in  the  literary  field,  make 
his  remarks  and  estimates  of  unusual  value.  Al- 
though he  was  an  ardent  admirer  of  Mr.  Flint  and 
had  read  his  Recollections,  the  Geography  and  His- 
tory and  Francis  Berrian  again  and  again,  and  hoped 
to  read  them  yet  more,  and  while  he  read  he  had  no 
thought  of  time,  he  was  not  blind  to  the  faults.  He 
was  free  also  to  speak  of  them.^^^  He  thought  his 
friend's  style  was  in  defiance  of  the  schools,  obnoxious 
to  criticism,  but  of  great  force  and  often  much  beauty. 
He  says : 

Disdaining  the  trammels  which  the  masters  would  impose  on 
him,  he  soars  into  the  regions  of  poetry.  Consequently  he  for- 
gets not  infrequently,  that  there  is  such  a  thing  in  composition 
as  ending  a  sentence. 

This  highly  poetic  style,  Mr.  Gallagher  thought, 

428  Venable,  William  H.,  Beginnings  of  Literary  Culture  in  the  Ohio 
Valley,  358. 

■*"^  Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.  iii,  36,  37. 


LITERARY  TRAITS  AND  ESTIMATES  255 

was  hardly  suitable  for  scientific  works.  He  had 
himself  found  it  a  great  annoyance.  It  was  too  inter- 
esting to  be  useful.  In  looking  for  facts  in  the  pages 
of  the  Geography  and  History  one  forgot  his  quest  or 
having  found  the  facts  he  forgot  himself  and  went  on 
and  on  in  the  thrilling  narrative.  Mr.  Gallagher  did 
not  know  of  Flint's  equal  in  the  English  language,  in 
descriptive  writing.  Of  this  power  he  says,  he  would 
feast  his  eye  upon  some  scene  of  beauty,  to  him  of  sur- 
passing loveliness,  seize  his  pen -the  divine  afflatus 
upon  him -and  page  after  page  would  soon  be  glow- 
ing with  the  eloquence  and  fervency  of  his  nature.*^" 

Mr.  Gallagher  thought  carelessness  and  volumi- 
nous writing  was  Mr.  Flint's  greatest  weakness.  In 
the  latter  part  of  the  Cincinnati  period,  when  Mr. 
Gallagher  was  writing  of  him  as  the  first  man  in  the 
western  group  of  writers -"a  group  only  ten  years  be- 
hind the  Atlantic  circles"- Mr.  Flint  was  very  pro- 
ductive and  seemed  to  his  friend,  not  to  be  adding  to 
his  fame.  "Capability,"  Mr.  Gallagher  thought, 
was  the  one  word  that  summed  up  and  described  Mr. 
Flint's  mental  traits.     He  says: 

Besides  John  Neal,  there  is  no  one  who  can  produce  in  a 
certain  time,  so  manj'  volumes  on  so  manj'  subjects,  and  gen- 
erally so  well  executed,  as  Timothy  Flint.*^^ 

Mr.  Flint's  style  both  accounts  for  his  interest  in 
French  literature,  and  is  itself  accounted  for  by  the 
influence  of  that  literature.  His  interest  in  French 
writers  was  so  strong  toward  the  close  of  his  literary 
career,  that  he  did  little  more  than  translate  and  com- 
ment upon  the  works  of  the  men  that  most  interested 
him.     This  was  not  a  late  interest,  however,  for  he 

*2°  Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.   iii,  36.  *3i  —  Idem. 


256  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

tells  that  in  college  he  was  a  student  of  French  writers. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  one  of  the  reasons  for  the  fail- 
ure of  his  magazine  was  that  he  lived  too  much  in 
European,  and  especially  in  French  literature  and 
history.  In  this,  as  in  his  missionary  work,  and  his 
religious  views,  he  was  in  advance  of  his  age  so  far  that 
they  left  him  alone  or  only  threw  stones  after  him. 
His  translations  from  the  Genie  du  Christianisme  had 
been  "cradled"  in  many  papers  but  not  credited  to 
him.*^== 

Perhaps  the  most  extensive  work  that  Mr.  Flint  ever 
undertook  was  that  upon  which  he  was  engaged  in 
the  early  part  of  1830,  the  translation  of  the  Diction- 
aire  Historique,  ou  Biographie  Universelle  Classique. 
Upon  the  basis  of  this  and  the  work  of  Lempriere,  he 
proposed  to  construct  an  American  Biographical 
Dictionary.  Upon  the  translation  he  had  his  oldest 
daughter's  help.  In  April,  1830,  he  had  made  a 
good  beginning  of  six  hundred  manuscript  pages  and 
had  gotten  well  along  with  the  b's.  In  June  he  had 
gotten  on  to  "D'JENGUYS."  The  translations  were 
probably  finished,  but  whether  the  American  Bio- 
graphical Dictionary  was  completed  there  are  no 
means  of  knowing.  The  closing  article  in  the  last 
number  of  the  Review  is  a  translation  from  the  Dic- 
tionaire  Historique  d'Education,  which  he  had  been 
admiring  a  few  months  earlier  and  wishing  some  com- 
petent translator  would  undertake  to  put  into  Eng- 
lish."^ 

Some  of  the  estimates  that  were  made  of  Mr.  Flint's 

432  Jf^estern  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  iii,  534. 

*33 —  Idem,  vol.  iii,  534,  582,  663,  also  587,  666. 


LITERARY  TRAITS  AND  ESTIMATES         257 

literary  work  by  his  contemporaries  may  be  further 
noted.  N,  P.  Willis,  in  his  American  Monthly  Mag- 
azine*^^  for  1829,  spoke  strongly  of  the  value  of  Mr. 
Flint's  magazine  and  historical  work  as  contributions 
to  the  knowledge  of  the  west,  and  mentioned  the  Sho- 
shonee  Valley  as  showing  the  influence  of  the  white 
people  upon  the  Indians.  In  the  Athenceum^^^  Mr. 
Willis  said,  that  he  was  really  a  man  of  talent,  and  that 
Francis  Berrian  was  his  best  work.  The  New  York 
Observer  *^^  said  that  he  ranked  among  the  more  dis- 
tinguished writers  of  the  country.  His  classmate, 
Samuel  Swett,  said: 

Mr.  Flint  was  one  of  the  most  distinguished  of  our  literary 
characters,  especially  at  the  west. 

His  Recollections^  Swett  thought  was  to  be  an  ever- 
lasting monument  to  his  fame.*" 

William  Cullen  Bryant  made  a  very  favorable  re- 
view of  the  first  edition  of  the  Geography  and  History 
in  the  New  York  Evening  Post.  Mr.  Flint  says  of 
this  notice  (no  copy  of  which  has  been  found) ,  "If  any 
one  were  not  proud,  he  would  be  more  or  less  than 
man.""« 

Griswold  said. 

It  [the  Geography  and  Historyl  was  at  that  time  the  most 
important  contribution  which  had  been  made  to  American 
geography,  and,  with  the  Recollections,  it  embraces  the  most 
graphic  and  faithful  descriptions  of  the  scenery  and  physical  as- 
pect of  the  western  states  that  has  ever  yet  been  written.^^^ 


"*Vol.  i,  75. 

*35  Vol.  for  1835,  no.  375,  12. 

436  Vol.  xviii,  139. 

*^''  Christian  Register,  vol.  xix,   138. 

*^^  Flint,  Timothy.     History  and  Geography,  p.  xiii. 

*^^  Griswold,  op.  cit.,  152. 


258  TLVIOTHY    FLINT 

Henry  T.  Tuckerman  ""  speaks  of  Flint  as  exten- 
sively read,  widely  beloved,  as  at  home  in  the  wilder- 
ness, a  favorite  in  society,  the  peculiar  value  of  his 
writings  being  that  they  evince  not  a  cursory  survey  of 
regions  described  but  of  years  of  residence.  Besides 
this  intimate  contact  with  men  and  countries  he  had 
the  power  of  patient  observation.  Tuckerman  believed 
that  Flint's  books  would  often  be  consulted  by  subse- 
quent writers. 

The  New  York  Co7?i7nercial -quoted  by  Mr.  Gal- 
lagher in  his  iVf/rror^"^- thinks  the  Geography  and 
History,  and  the  Recollections  the  most  valuable  con- 
tributions that  industry  and  research  have  ever  pro- 
duced for  the  making  known  of  the  western  interior. 
Mr.  Flint  is,  this  critic  thinks,  one  of  the  most  excellent 
writers  that  the  country  has  produced,  and  belongs  to 
that  very  rare  class  in  the  country,  "authors  or  littera- 
teurs." He  says  also  that  Mr.  Flint  is  almost  as  ver- 
satile as  Goldsmith,  that  he  is  distinguished  as  a 
novelist,  naturalist,  geologist,  geographer,  and  essay- 
ist. His  ethical  productions  seem  to  this  writer  to 
show  a  mind  strong  and  cultivated,  a  judgment  un- 
warped  and  sound,  with  a  sense  of  religion  of  the  most 
purifying  influence.  This  writer's  only  lament  is  that 
Mr.  Flint  has  not  been  more  widely  appreciated. 

Mrs.  Trollope  thinks  no  better  of  America's  liter- 
ature than  of  her  other  characteristics,  but  she  has  a 
good  word  for  Mr.  Flint.     She  says: 

Mr.  Flint's  Francis  Berrian  is  delightful.     There  Is  a  vigor 
and  freshness  in  his  writing  that  is  exactly  in  accordance  with 

^■^'^  America  and  Her  Comrnenlntors.  jr'itli  a  Critical  Skefc/i  of  Travel 
in  the  United  States,  402,  404. 

■**!  Cincinnati  Mirror,  vcl.  iii,  444. 


LITERARY  TRAITS  AND  ESTIMATES         259 

what  one  looks  for  in  the  literature  of  a  new  country ;  and  yet, 
strange  to  say,  is  exactly  what  is  most  wanting  in  that  of  Amer- 
ica. .  .  His  History  of  the  Mississippi  Valley  is  a  work  of 
great  interest  and  information,  and  will,  I  hope,  in  time  find  its 
way  to  England,  where  I  think  it  is  much  more  likely  to  be  ap- 
preciated than  in  America.*'- 

The  United  States  Literary  Gazette*'"  of  Boston  for 
May  15,  1826,  gives  a  dozen  pages  of  quotations  from 
the  Recollections.  The  reviewer  makes  few  remarks 
about  the  work  except  that  it  is  by  one  very  competent 
to  write  and  not  of  the  common  class  of  tourists.  It 
is,  he  thinks,  a  very  important  subject  upon  which  the 
older  section  of  the  country  needs  to  be  accurately  and 
fully  informed,  and  he  quotes  fully  for  the  benefit  of 
those  who  may  not  see  the  book. 

The  Southern  Review***  gives  an  extended  review 
of  the  Recollections.  The  reviewer  has  carefully  read 
the  work,  and  gives  a  very  accurate  itinerary  of  Mr. 
Flint's  journeyings,  which  can  not  be  made  out  without 
careful  reading  and  rereading.  With  the  quotations 
and  synopsis  given  in  this  review,  we  have  a  very  good 
presentation  of  the  whole  work.  But  even  then  the 
reviewer  says : 

When  we  look  back  on  what  we  are  compelled  to  omit,  we 
can  not  but  feel  regret.  We  feel  sorrow  at  closing  the  volume 
and  bidding  our  friend  adieu,  and  can  not  refrain  from  sincerely 
wishing  him  a  re-establishment  of  his  health,  and  a  long  life  of 
happiness  and  utility  in  the  bosom  of  his  amiable  family. 

Concerning  the   character  of   this   "Presbyterian 

Minister  from  New  England,"  this  writer  says : 

He  Is,  evidently,  a  man  of  sound  observation,  of  liberal  prin- 

^'t^  Trollope,  Mrs.,  op.  cit.,  vol.  ii,  155. 
**^'  Vol.  iv,  133-146. 
4**  Vol.  ii,  192-216. 


26o  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

ciples,  of  engaging  simplicity,  pure  benevolence,  and  unaffected 
piety.  .  .  Though  a  man  of  education,  he  does  not  appear 
to  be  one  of  science ;  or  if  so,  he  has  carefully  avoided  displaying  it. 

This  man  is  very  much  pleased  with  Mr.  Flint's 
unprejudiced  views  on  the  slavery  question,  and  with 
his  advice  to  the  people  of  the  north  against  the  polit- 
ical agitation  and  abuse  of  the  question. 

The  A^nerican  Monthly  Review**^  devotes  eight 
pages  to  a  review  of  Flint's  History  and  Geography. 
The  reviewer  is  occupied  with  pointing  out  the  errors 
of  fact,  or  supposed  errors,  the  infelicities  of  the  lan- 
guage and  the  absurdities  of  certain  statements.  Some 
of  these  charges  are  true.  Mr.  Flint  is  not  always 
clear  in  his  statements.  Some  of  his  statements  are 
far  too  general  when  they  should  have  been  definite. 
In  other  cases,  it  is  probable  that  Mr.  Flint  knew  of 
what  he  was  speaking  better  than  the  reviewer.  For 
instance,  the  reviewer  states  that  Mr.  Birkbeck  had 
nothing  to  do  with  Mr.  Flower's  founding  of  Al- 
bion, Illinois.  He  seems  to  be  ignorant  of  the  fact 
that  Mr.  Flower  and  Mr.  Birkbeck  bought  a  tract 
of  land  together,  divided  it  by  lot  and  labored  to- 
gether for  the  building  up  of  the  settlement  on  the 
English  Prairie  where  both  Albion  and  Wanborough 
were  located."'' 

The  editor  of  the  Knickerbocker^  probably  Charles 
Fenno  Hofifman,"^  was  an  admirer  of  Flint.  In 
March,  1833,  he  gives  six  pages  of  the  translation  of 
Droz's  Art  of  Being  Happy.     He  speaks  of  the  trans- 

4«  Vol.  iv,  460-468. 

^*^  See  Thwaitcs's  Early  Western  Travels,  vol.  ix,  71,  note ;  vol.  x,  47, 
note,  271,  272. 

**'^  Knickerbocker,  vol.   ii,   no;   vol.   iii,   320. 


LITERARY  TRAITS  AND  ESTIMATES         261 


lator  as,  our  eloquent  countryman.  In  the  same  vol- 
ume he  reviews  the  Lectures  upon  Natural  History. 
He  says: 

The  name  of  Mr.  Flint  begins  to  be  well  known  to  his 
countrymen  as  that  of  one  of  the  very  best  of  our  native  writers. 

He  approves  of  the  aim  of  the  book  and  speaks  of 
the  style  as,  "like  all  of  the  writings  of  the  author,  flow- 
ing, warm  and  animated.""^ 

On  the  other  hand  is  the  American  Monthly  Re- 
view "^  which  had  to  read  the  same  Lectures  with  "our 
smelling  bottle  in  hand."  It  was  not  from  fear  of  the 
cholera,  nor  from  the  bad  odor  arising  from  the  book, 
nor  yet  from  a  proneness  to  fainting,  but 

To  prevent  heart  sinking,  we  were  obliged  to  stimulate  our 
nasal  extremity,  while  we  read.  .  ,  Such  continued  deep 
plowing  of  our  sensibilities,  such  delectable  outpouring  of  waters 
of  pathos,  such  wild  visions  of  fancy,  hanging  round  grave  and 
solemn  preaching,  like  mistletoe  on  an  oak,  such  snuffs,  mere 
finger  pinches  of  philosophy,  mingled  with  wholesale  absurdities, 
were  altogether  too  much  for  our  poor,  mechanical,  straightfor- 
ward humanity.  We  trust  there  are  natures  to  which  this 
book  will  be  like  mother's  milk,  natural  food. 

It  is  the  high  sounding  title  of  the  work  and  its  very 
general  and  popular  character  which  seems  to  be  most 
offensive  to  the  editor  of  the  American  Monthly  Re- 
view. The  title  of  the  book  is  a  mere  bait,  he  thinks. 
It  is  not  fair  because  it  does  not  say  that  important  lec- 
tures are  translations.  The  editor  has  not  time  to 
point  them  out  but  he  warns  the  reader  that  the  book  is 
full  of  errors.  It  has  great  honesty  of  purpose  united 
with  great  credulity.     The  credulity  is  that  of  poetry, 

**^  Knickerbocker,  vol.  i,  140-146,  and  193,  194. 
4*9  Vol.  iii,  261. 


262  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

and  altogether  too  credulous  for  natural  history.  The 
reviewer  says: 

Hence  it  is  that  furies  with  snaky  hair,  no  longer  people  the 
regions  of  imagination,  but  under  our  author's  hand  would 
become  every  day  sort  of  folk.  He  tells  us  that  he  has  actually 
seen  a  hair  -  plucked  from  the  living  horse,  and  thrown  into  a 
trough  of  water,  exposed  to  the  genial  rays  of  a  warm  sun,  turn 
to  a  living  snake.*^" 

The  editor  thinks  that  Mr.  Flint  has  destroyed  a 
beautiful  fable  by  believing  it  a  fact. 

Still,  with  all  his  exuberance  and  wildness  .  .  .  Mr. 
Flint  has  made  a  useful  book.  Its  object  is  noble.  Even  with 
all  his  faults,  his  inflated  style,  and  all  its  puerilities  and  gross 
inaccuracies  the  book  has  many  redeeming  virtues,  and  for  the 
hour  is  a  pleasant  companion. 

But  it  is  vain  to  look  for  a  little  appreciation  of  the 
work.  The  reviewer  is  of]f  again  upon  his  old  way  of 
ridicule: 

There  is  no  system,  and  the  author  pretends  to  none. 

You  are  not  led  softly  into  the  realms  of  mystery 
but: 

You  are  seized  by  the  collar,  and  pitched  heels  over  head  into 
the  fathomless  ocean  of  science.  As  j'ou  scramble  ashore  all 
dripping  and  covered  with  sea-weed,  the  author  again  grasps  you 
and  introduces  you  to  some  great  picture. 

■'"'O  American  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  iii,  264.  This  reference  is  to  page  49 
of  the  Lectures  and  is  as  follows:  "I  have  observed  an  analogous  fact,  apper- 
taining to  another  branch  of  natural  history.  I  heard  the  fact  asserted  and 
denied,  and  I  made  the  trial  myself.  A  long  black  hair  from  a  horse's  mane 
was  left  in  a  wooden  trough,  to  soak  in  rain  water,  during  tlie  sultry  dajs  of 
August,  for  ten  or  twelve  days.  At  the  end  of  that  time  it  had  become 
■white,  and  had  acquired  a  protuberance  at  one  extremity',  like  a  head.  It 
moved  about,  folded  and  unfolded  itself,  showed  sensibility  when  touched, 
and  had  become  in  fact  that  singular  animal,  of  which  naturalists,  as  far 
as  I  know,  have  taken  no  notice ;  but  Avhich  farmers  know  well  by  the  name 
hair-snake." 


LITERARY  TRAITS  AND  ESTIMATES         263 

Again  and  more  fairly: 

This  is  the  great  fault  of  the  book  before  us ;  there  is  a  want 
of  impressive  distinctness.  .  ,  It  is  truly  to  be  lamented  that 
one  who  knows  so  well  how  to  color  and  embody  with  life  such 
facts,  should  allow  his  imagination  to  usurp  the  throne  of  his 
judgment. 

The  Style  of  this  reviewer  is  that  of  the  smart  news- 
paper paragrapher  and  there  appears  to  be  a  personal 
dislike  of  Mr.  Flint.  But  he  has  pointed  out  the  evi- 
dent weaknesses  of  the  author.  His  suggestion  that 
Mr.  Flint  might  honor  his  former  profession,  the 
ministry,  by  thinking  more  and  writing  less,  is  of 
course  unkind,  but  it  is  none  the  less  true. 

The  London  Quarterly  Review  *^"^  for  1832,  gives 
twenty  pages  to  a  review  of  the  Recollections.  Most 
of  this  is  in  fine  print,  quoting  from  Mr.  Flint's  work. 
It  is  for  the  most  part  favorable,  but  the  reviewer  has 
not  read  the  work  closely  enough  to  follow  Mr.  Flint's 
movements.  He  thinks  that  Mr.  Flint  lived  longest 
at  Jackson,  Missouri,  and  that  he  made  one  visit  to 
New  England  during  the  first  ten  years  of  his  western 
residence.  The  impression  of  the  reviewer  concern- 
ing the  work  as  a  whole  is  worth  notice.     He  says: 

We  wish  Mr.  Timothy  Flint  had  fallen  in  our  way  before 
we  drew  up  our  account  of  Mrs.  Trollope  On  the  Domestic 
Manners  of  the  Americans,  because  the  tw-o  writers  travel  over 
much  of  the  same  ground,  and  the  contrasts  as  well  as  the  paral- 
lels, which  their  descriptions  of  nature  and  society  present,  are  full 
of  interest.  Having  lost  the  opportunity  of  presenting  them 
together -we  must  be  contented  with  expressing  our  hope  that 
these  Recollections  may  be  reprinted  in  this  country,  and  placed 
in  every  library  of  voyages  and  travels,  on  the  same  shelf  with 

^5^  Vol.  xlviii,  201-222. 


264  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

those  two  little  volumes  which  seem  to  have  proved  such  bitter 
chewing  to  our  Radicals  and  Whi^s.  With  obvious  faults,  Mr. 
Flint's  style  is  marked  by  countervailing  excellencies,  being  lively, 
flowing,  often  vigorous,  and,  in  general,  quite  unaffected  ;  but  this 
is  a  secondary  merit.  These  pages  reflect  a  sincere,  humane,  and 
liberal  character,  a  warm  and  gentle  heart  and  hardly  even  a 
prejudice  that  is  not  amiable. 

The  reviewer  is  in  full  sympathy  with  Mr.  Flint 
except  that  he  is  "pulled  up"  by  the  unfavorable  com- 
parison of  the  present  European  nations  with  the  an- 
cient people  of  America  known  as  Moundbuilders. 

Of  such  poor  bigotry,  based  on  such  solid  ignorance,  we  should 
never  have  expected  to  discover  a  specimen  in  the  same  book  with 
the  beautiful  passages  we  have  been  quoting.     Here,  however, 
J  is  the  Yankee  mark. 

'  The  North  American  Review  for  October,  1826/" 

I        in  reviewing  the  Recollections  says : 

I  This  volume  has  been  perused  by  us  with  great  pleasure,  and 

I  with  much  respect  for  the  writer's  talents  and  character.     We 

/  have  risen  from  it,  indeed,  with  a  stronger  sympathy,  than  we 

I  should  wish  to  have  occasion  to  feel  with  the  author  in  the  hard- 

ships and  sufferings  endured  by  him  and  his  family;  with  more 
vivid  conceptions  than  we  before  possessed,  of  the  peculiar  aspects 
of  the  grand  and  beautiful  features  of  the  country  he  describes; 
with  more  enlarged  views  of  its  natural  resources,  of  the  extent 
and  progress  of  its  population ;  and  with  more  favorable  impres- 
sions of  the  general  character  of  our  fellow  citizens  of  those  vast 
and  fertile  regions,  that  border  upon  the  Mississippi,  and  its 
mighty  tributary  streams  from  the  east  and  the  west. 

Mr.  Flint  is  not  one  of  the  common  herd  of  travel  writers 
and  journal  makers  "who"  as  he  remarks,  "travel  post  or  are 
wafted  through  a  country  in  a  steamboat,  and  assume,  on  the 
ground  of  having  thus  traversed  it,  to  know  all  about  it."  ^'^^ 


*52  Vol.  xxiii,  355-368.  ^^^ —  Idem,  357. 


LITERARY  TRAITS  AND  ESTIMATES         265 

Still  more  to  the  purpose  the  reviewer  thinks,  is  the 
fact  that  Mr.  Flint's 

Intellectual,  moral,  and  literary  qualifications  fitted  him  to 
avail  himself  of  these  advantages,  and  to  impart  attractions  and 
an  interest  to  his  narrative,  which  such  qualifications  only  can 
impart  to  a  work  of  this  kind.  He  unites  properties  which  do 
not  often  meet  in  the  same  mind,  a  capacity  for  discriminating 
and  philosophic  observation,  a  true  tact  and  common  sense  logic, 
with  the  imagination,  feeling,  and  romantic  sentiment  of  the 
poet  and  novelist.  .  .  His  deep  and  vivid  sympathy  with  the 
varying  aspects  of  the  physical  universe,  which  opened  to  his 
view  in  the  Western  world,  gives  to  his  narrative  one  of  its  most 
peculiar  and  engaging  features.  There  is  a  truth,  a  distinctness, 
a  graphic  fidelity  in  his  descriptions,  which  make  the  reader  feel 
himself  to  be  a  present  spectator  of  the  objects  and  occurrences 
he  describes.  .  .  As  he  feels  strongly  and  deeply,  he  heightens, 
no  doubt,  by  the  coloring  of  his  imagination,  the  hues  of  the  gay 
or  sad  vicissitudes  which  befell  him.  Yet  there  is  an  air  of  good 
faith  and  reality  in  what  he  relates,  which  convinces  us,  that  we 
may  listen  to  him  with  the  confidence,  with  which  a  man,  at  his 
fireside,  receives  the  communications  of  a  friend  of  tried  integrity, 
telling  the  tale  of  his  eventful  wanderings  and  various  fortunes 
after  an  absence  of  many  years.*^*.  .  It  has  the  peculiar  charm 
of  an  autobiography,  written  by  a  man  of  cultured  intellect,  dis- 
closing his  thoughts  and  the  hidden  workings  of  his  soul,  under 
various  novel  circumstances.  .  .  The  reflections  are  often  orig- 
inal and  sensible,  and  indicate  a  mind  accustomed  to  hold  "large 
discourse,  looking  before  and  after,"  and  rich  in  its  own  re- 
sources. 

In  the  closing  paragraph  of  this  review,  the  faults 
are  pointed  out.  The  reviewer  does  not  mean  to  be 
unjust,  and  is  not,  when  he  says : 

An  obvious  fault  in  this  work  is  the  confusion,  which  the  read- 
er experiences  in  its  perusal,  arising  from  the  circumstance,  that 
the  author  seems  sometimes  to  be  writing  at  Alexandria,  some- 

^^*  North  American  Revieiv,  vol.  xxiii,  358. 


266  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

times  in  New  England,  and  at  other  times  it  is  difficult  to  con- 
jecture where.  Instances  of  repetition  in  thought  and  language 
frequently  occur.  The  same  word  is  often  repeated  ungrace- 
fully in  the  same  sentence,  where  a  synonym  would  save  the 
awkwardness,  and  express  the  sense  equally  well.  The  thread- 
bare quotation,  "longing,  lingering  look  behind,"  comes  upon 
us  something  like  a  half  dozen  times.  Many  parts  of  the  work 
bear  evident  marks  of  haste  in  the  composition.  We  notice  these, 
not  as  flagrant  faults,  but  as  blemishes,  which  a  little  more  atten- 
tion, or  careful  revision  would  have  prevented. 

This  review  makes  extensive  quotations  from  the 
w^ork  and  is  perhaps  the  best  of  the  several  that  were 
written. 

The  North  American  Review  did  not  soon  forget 
Mr.  Flint.  It  occasionally  referred  to  him  for  several 
years  after  his  retirement.     In  July,  1 836,  it  said : 

Flint's  Ten  Years'  Residence  is  one  of  our  few  genuine  na- 
tional works.  It  could  have  been  written  nowhere  but  in  the 
Western  Valley.  It  could  have  been  written  by  no  one,  whose 
mind  had  not  been  moulded  by  a  constant  contact  with  western 
scenery  and  people. 

The  reviewer  was  speaking  of  another  writer's  work 
in  lines  similar  to  those  of  Mr.  Flint.  This  writer 
seems  to  have  criticised  Flint's  work  as  a  failure.  The 
Review  remarks: 

He  will  have  adJed  to  his  already  well-earned  fame,  when 
he  shall  have  produced  such  a  "failure"  as  Mr.  Flint's  Ten  Years 
Residence  in  the  Mississippi  Valley. *^^ 


^'^s  Vol.  xliii,  2. 


XVII.     PERSONAL  AND  RELIGIOUS 
CHARACTERISTICS 

It  seems  fitting  that  a  few  of  Mr.  Flint's  friends  and 
critics  should  be  heard  from  as  they  bear  witness  con- 
cerning his  personal  and  religious  life. 

In  forming  any  estimate  of  his  life  it  must  always  be 
kept  in  mind  that  Timothy  Flint  was  in  poor  health, 
often  an  invalid,  for  at  least  two  thirds  of  his  three 
score  years.  He  belonged  to  that  choice  company  of 
the  world  heroes  and  heroines  who  carry  their  own 
and  often  their  brother's  burden,  while  suffering  from 
pain  and  disease.  That  he  did  his  full  share  of  work 
in  the  world,  invalid  though  he  was,  is  evident  when 
one  turns  through  the  two  thousand  pages  of  the  Re- 
view which  was  almost  exclusively  his  own  work,^^^ 
and  that  was  but  a  small  part  of  his  literary  work  dur- 
ing the  three  years  of  its  publication. 

Mr.  W.  D.  Gallagher  said:  "He  writes  as  he 
talks- rapidly,  eloquently,  poetically,  carelessly." 
Mr.  Gallagher,  as  has  been  said,  was  a  close  friend  of 
Mr.  Flint  and  admired  him  greatly.     In  1835  ^^  ^^^~ 

'^^^  N.  P.  Willis  is  clearly  mistaken  in  thinking  that  Mrs.  Trollope  did 
any  extensive  writing  for  the  IVestern  Monthly  Revieav.  There  are  no 
signed  articles  by  her  and  nothing  to  show  that  she  wrote  anything.  Others 
seem  to  have  the  same  idea  as  Mr.  Willis  in  this  matter.  Mr.  Gallagher  in 
the  Mirror  (vol.  iii,  37),  says  Flint  wrote  three  fourths  of  the  Revieiu  him- 
self.* This  appears  to  be  a  just  estimate. 


268  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

icated  to  him  a  little  volume  of  poems,  Erato  Number 
Oner' 

IMr.  Flint  was  a  man  who  made  many  devoted 
friends  and  a  few  bitter  enemies.  There  is  a  freshness, 
a  fullness  and  vitality,  a  personal  charm  about  the  man 
which  strikes  even  the  modern  reader  strongly.  This 
is  noticeable  in  the  opening  pages  of  his  magazine. 
Modern  readers  feel  also  the  personal  charm  of  the 
man  in  his  novels  and  other  writings. 

Mr.  Willis  was  so  charmed  with  the  spirit  which 
Mr.  Flint  had  shown  in  making  a  correction  concern- 
ing a  previous  statement  about  Mr.  Willis's  mag- 
azine, that  he  says,  "Now  could  we  walk  to  Ohio  'to 
kiss  the  hand  of  that  man'."  He  had  not  met  with 
such  cordial  sympathy  since  he  left  his  college  class."^ 

It  was  the  charm  of  personal  character,  subtle  and 
elusive,  but  marked,  that  first  attracted  and  induced 
the  writer  to  make  an  extended  study  of  his  life.  This 
impression  has  been  made  upon  several  friends,  some 
of  literar}"  tastes,  and  others,  the  casual  novel  reader,  to 
whom  Mr.  Flint's  novels  and  Recollections  were 
loaned.  This  persistence  of  his  influence  and  charm 
will  help  to  explain  some  of  the  warm  expressions  of 
his  contemporaries. 

One  of  his  most  enthusiastic  admirers  was  Mrs. 
TroUope.  Such  a  person's  testimony  regarding  Mr. 
Flint  and  his  family  is  all  the  more  striking  because  of 
her  usual  attitude  toward  things  American. *^^  She 
says: 

The  most  agreeable  acquaintance  I  made  in  Cincinnati,  and 

*•">  Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.  iii,  36.     Also,  Knickerbocker,  vol.  v,  348-349. 
■*f'i  American  Monthly  Magazine,  vol.  i,  358. 
^•'-  See   pages   212-215. 


CHARACTERISTICS  269 

indeed  one  of  the  most  talented  men  I  ever  met,  was  Mr.  Flint, 
the  author  of  several  extremely  clever  volumes,  and  the  editor 
of  the  Western  Monthly  Review.  His  conversational  powers 
are  of  the  highest  order:  he  is  the  only  person  I  remember  to 
have  known  with  first-rate  powers  of  satire,  and  even  of  sarcasm, 
whose  kindness  of  nature  and  of  manner  remained  perfectly  unin- 
jured. In  some  of  his  critical  notices,  there  is  a  strength  and 
keenness  second  to  nothing  of  the  kind  I  have  ever  read.  He  is 
a  warm  patriot,  and  so  true-hearted  an  American  that  we  could 
not  always  be  of  the  same  opinion  on  all  the  subjects  we  discussed ; 
but  whether  it  were  the  force  and  brilliance  of  his  language,  his 
genuine  and  manly  sincerity  of  feeling,  or  his  bland  and  gentle- 
man-like manner  that  beguiled  me,  I  know  not,  but  certainly  he 
is  the  only  American  I  ever  listened  to,  whose  unqualified  praise 
of  his  country  did  not  appear  to  me  somewhat  over-strained  and 
ridiculous.^®^ 

His  classmate,  Samuel  Swett,  says  about  him: 

.  .  .  Of  ardent  temperament,  active,  insatiable  inquisitive- 
ness,  confident  in  his  opinions  and  sanguine  in  his  pursuits,  inde- 
fatigably  studious,  and  well  read  in  his  profession  and  the  auxil- 
iary sciences  and  literature.  .  .  He  was  himself  an  eloquent 
companion,  of  inexhaustible  information,  infinite  anecdote,  sur- 
charged with  wit  and  humor,  and,  what  is  better,  with  good 
humor.  How  his  heart  overflowed  with  human  kindness,  his 
numerous  troops  of  friends  in  every  part  of  our  country  will 
cordially  attest.*^* 

It  was  this  friend  who  thought  that  Flint's  western 
experiences  had  effectually  cured  him  of  his  unsophis- 
ticated traits,  and  made  him  passionately  fond  of  so- 
ciety. 

At  the  time  of  his  death  the  Knickerbocker  said : 
He  was  a  warm  friend,  an  upright,  independent  and  honorable 

man  and  a  true  Christian.*®^ 


^^^XroUope,  Mrs.,  op.  cit.,  vol.  i,  124. 
^•*  Christian  Register,  vol.  xix,   13S. 
^^^'  Knickerbocker,  vol.  xvi,  364. 


270  TIMOTHY  FLINT 

In  the  land  of  his  adoption,  he  is  well  remembered, 
though  he  is  almost  forgotten  in  the  land  of  his  birth. 
Descendants  and  friends  remember  him  as  an  extreme- 
ly attractive  and  lovable  man,  who  combined  with  in- 
tellectual culture  and  strength,  great  charm  of  man- 
ners and  personality, 

Mr.  F'lint  probably  did  largely  overcome  his  nat- 
ural shrinking  from  the  public.  But  he  was  always 
somewhat,  as  he  says : 

Repulsed  from  the  giddy,  joyous  throng 

As  one  of  other  kind,  in  musing  mood 

I  find  me  here  alone,  a  pilgrim  come 

To  view  once  more  the  final  resting  place 

Of  my  forefathers,  and  the  sounding  pines 

Still  spread  their  dark  green  tassels  to  the  breeze.**® 

He  was  in  the  habit  of  walking  in  the  woods  at  sun- 
rise and  again  in  the  evening.*"  He  traversed  the 
streets  but  little.**'^  There  was  always  something  of 
the  recluse  about  him.  He  was  very  sensitive  to 
criticism,  though  he  did  not  often  reply  to  it.*^^ 

But  along  with  this  brooding  and  silent  nature, 
shrinking  from  his  kind,  there  was  also  an  intense 
interest  in  men.  He  delighted  to  study  the  "forest 
walkers"  and  to  show  that  the  human  nature  which 
was  there,  was  a  "correspondence -as  the  Sweden- 
borgians  say- of  all,  that  was  in  Rome,  or  is  in  Pekin 
or  Petersburg,  Paris,  London,  or  Washington."*^"  If 
Flint's  novels  are  not  of  the  modern  psychological 

466  ffgstern  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  ii,  210. 

**^ —  Idem,  vol.  iii,  637,  line  16 

*®^ —  Idem,  vol.  ii,  83,  line  33. 

**® —  Idem,  vol.  i,  Editor's  Address,  9  ff.,  also  272-273. 

*'o  Flint,  Timothy.     Shoshonee  Valley,  vol.  i,  17. 


CHARACTERISTICS  271 

type,  they  show  at  least  as  much  interest  in  the  motives 
of  their  people,  as  in  the  plot.  This  is  true  particu- 
larly of  the  Shoshonee  Valley  and  Francis  Berrian. 

Mr.  Flint  is  interested  in  the  eccentric  doctor,  who 
proposed  with  bread  pills  and  colored  waters  to  "kick 
calomel  and  fever  out  of  doors."  His  theory  rested 
on  the  healing  powers  of  nature  and  his  practice  was 
to  let  the  patient  alone.  Flint  was  half  in  favor  of  the 
theory,  but  wholly  interested  in  the  doctor  as  a  speci- 
men of  his  tribe.*" 

As  another  indication  of  his  interest  in  character,  it 
is  suggestive  to  remember  that  he  had  a  large  collec- 
tion of  autographs,  as  large,  he  thought,  as  any  col- 
lection in  the  country."' 

Mr.  Flint  had  a  very  lively  interest  in  the  frontiers- 
man.    He  says  of  them : 

There  is  a  kind  of  moral  sublimity  in  the  contemplation  of  the 
adventures  and  daring  of  such  men.  They  read  a  lesson  to 
shrinking  and  effeminate  spirits,  to  the  men  of  soft  hands  and 
fashionable  h'fe.  .  .  They  tend  to  reinspire  something  of  that 
simplicity  of  manners,  manly  hardihood,  and  Spartan  energy  and 
force  of  character,  which  formed  so  conspicuous  a  part  of  the 
nature  of  the  settlers  of  the  western  wilderness.*"" 

Mr.  Flint's  most  popular  book  Daniel  Boone,*'* 
judging  by  the  fourteen  different  editions  through 
which  it  passed,  shows  this  strong  interest  in  the  fron- 

■*^'  JFestern  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  ii,  i^6y\6-]. 

■*^- —  Idem,  vol.  iii,  637,  line  4. 

^^"  Editor's  preface  to  Pattie's  Personal  Narrtiti-vr,  in  Thwaites's  Early 
Western  Travels,  vol.  xviii,  27. 

*^*  The  popularity  of  Flint's  Daniel  Bonne  is  shown  also  by  the  fact  that 
it  was  copied  by  later  writers.  The  North  .Imerican  Revieiv,  vol.  Ixii,  71, 
says  of  the  A dventiires  of  Daniel  Boone,  by  the  author  of  Uncle  Phillip's 
Conversations  that  it  is  taken  almost  entirely  from  Mr.  Flint's  v.orlc.  Even 
Flint's  mathematical  errors  are  copied. 


272  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

tiersman.  The  story  of  Oolemba  and  the  Shoshonee 
Valley  are  studies  of  Indian  life  as  aflfected  by  the 
white  race.  These  red  men  and  the  frontiersman 
were  types  of  life  that  he  knew  well  and  most  suc- 
cessfully described. 

Mr.  Venable's  remark  about  Timothy  Flint's  inter- 
est in  human  nature,  and  his  optimistic  view  in  all 
stages,  is  quite  in  point  here : 

Timothy  seems  never  to  have  encountered  other  tlian  amiable 
people  in  his  wanderings;  French,  Spanish,  Dutch,  German,  Eng- 
lish, half-breeds,  full  blood  savages -all  were  amiable  to  him. 
With  equal  hospitality  of  heart,  he  met  Yankee  traders,  and 
Kentucky  boatmen,  Canadian  voyageurs,  and  Texas  rangers.*^^ 

Enough  has  been  said  during  the  progress  of  this 
story  about  his  love  of  nature,  of  his  delight  in  the 
wildest  storm  and  the  most  terrific  crashes  of  thunder, 
and  his  interest  in  a  great  variety  of  nature's  phenom- 
ena. 

Mr.  Flint  was  often  lifting  the  curtain  of  the  future 
and  vv^ondering  what  would  be,  in  the  years  to  come. 
The  development  of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  the  in- 
fluence of  canals  and  railroads  and  the  growth  of  our 
institutions,  are  subjects  with  which  he  frequently 
deals.  One  of  the  most  curious  articles  that  we  have 
from  his  pen,  and  not  the  least  interesting,  is  an  article 
entitled,  "Extracts  from  the  Gazette  of  Oregon, 
mouth  of  Columbia,  July  5,  1900."  In  this  article,*^^ 
Mr.  Flint  attempts  to  put  himself  forward  nearly  three 
quarters  of  a  century,  and  write  a  Fourth  of  July  edi- 
torial for  a  daily  paper  published  at  an  unknown  city, 
of  one  hundred  thousand  inhabitants,  and  fifty  years 

475  Venable,  William  H.,  op.  cit.,  346. 

476  IfTestern  Monthly  Review,  vol.  i,  255-263. 


CHARACTERISTICS  273 

of  age,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River.  One's 
curiosity  is  to  see  how  far  he  missed,  and  how  near  he 
came  to  the  conditions  that  existed  when  the  year  1900 
had  arrived.  There  were  he  says,  vast  numbers  of 
Japanese  and  Chinese  who  could  come  from  their  own 
land  in  seven  days,  but  they  were  merchants  and  me- 
chanics, devoted  to  their  adopted  land,  celebrating  the 
national  day,  and  loved  and  trusted  by  their  native 
American  neighbors.  Of  the  millions  of  people  who 
lived  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  one  half  were 
immigrants  from  China,  Japan,  and  the  islands  of  the 
sea.  This  section  of  the  great  country,  could  compare 
in  culture,  comforts,  and  wealth  with  the  proudest 
portion  of  the  land.  There  were  one  hundred  mil- 
lions of  people  in  the  United  States,  united  and  strong, 
courted  by  all  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

The  Spanish  Republics  extended  far  to  the  north 
as  in  the  days  before  the  Mexican  War.  They  were 
now  populous  and  happy.  Travel  was  so  expedited 
that  the  journey  from  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri  via 
river  and  canal,  could  be  often  made  in  less  than 
twenty  days !  The  journey  across  the  continent  was  so 
comfortable  that  a  rich  lady,  who  fancied  herself  an 
invalid,  had  made  the  entire  distance  by  river  and 
canal  and  had  not  once  left  her  couch.  Canals  were 
every^vhere  common,  even  over  the  mountains.  Bal- 
loons were  now  traveling  through  the  air,  directed  as 
easily  as  skiffs  in  the  water.  Strange  that  he  did  not 
foresee  the  railroad! 

It  is  the  age  of  petticoats  and  the  "better  half"  of 
the  species.  Woman  has  learned  algebra,  chemistry, 
and  all  the  list,  including  verse-making  and  man-gov- 


2  74  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

crning.  She  has  thrown  corsets,  false  curls,  everlast- 
ings and  affectation  to  the  fire  and  winds,  and  returned 
to  the  graceful  draperies  of  the  Greeks. 

In  short,  they  have  jjymnasticised  and  calfsthenized,  and  man- 
aged, what  with  verses  and  pretty  ways,  and  thrumming  instru- 
ments, and  warbling  songs,  after  the  fashion  of  the  nightingale, 
and  by  seeming  to  be  humble  and  good,  until,  aided  by  down 
right  muscle  and  physical  power  .  .  .  they  have  carried  the 
point,  that  for  the  next  century  they  shall  legislate,  decide  the 
causes,  and  fight  the  battles,  allowing  the  men  to  lie  upon  their 
oars,  and  to  be  put  upon  a  probation  of  good  behavior,  in  which, 
if  they  come  forth  as  gold,  they  may  be  allowed  to  take  govern- 
ing, turn  about,  every  other  century/"' 

In  morals  there  were  still  greater  improvements. 
The  very  boys  in  the  street  scout  a  miser.  A  profane 
man  is  not  admitted  to  good  society'.  A  liar  gets  no 
credit  for  the  second  lie.  The  people  turn  up  their 
noses  at  a  babbler.  Even  the  fairest  woman  if  she  at- 
tempt to  relate  scandal,  causes  the  people  to  rise  from 
the  tea-table  and  fly  as  from  the  plague.  Already 
there  has  come  to  be  a  thousand  churches  of  Christ  in 
China.  There  has  just  been  a  world  meeting  of  all 
Christian  churches  at  the  birth  place  of  the  Redeemer, 
which  separated,  after  recommending  as  "The  motto 
and  formula  of  all  Christians  under  heaven  these 
words:  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest;  on  earth  peace 
and  good  will  to  men.^^  ''*  The  article  closes  with  an 
amusing  description  of  the  manner  in  which  "Miss 
Emily  Evergreen  of  the  city  of  Oregon,  aged  seventy- 
five  years,"  was  ground  over  and  rejuvenated  "by 
transfusion  of  youthful  blood  into  her  veins.""" 

*''''  Western  Monthly    Revieii;  vol.   i,    260. 
*"  _  Idem,  258. 
479 —  Ide?n,  261-263. 


CHARACTERISTICS  275 

The  questions  of  death  and  the  future  life  were  of 
even  more  interest  to  Mr.  Flint  than  these  of  the  fu- 
ture of  the  world's  development.  He  said  that  when  he 
passed  through  a  town,  if  he  had  time,  he  always  vis- 
ited the  cemetery.  In  his  notes  to  the  Art  of  Being 
Happy  he  returns  repeatedly  to  the  thought  and  expe- 
riences of  death  and  the  hope  of  immortality.  Mr. 
Flint  is  not  morbid  at  this  point,  but  rises  to  the  height 
of  St.  Paul  and  the  great  Christian  souls  of  all  ages,  in 
his  confidence  of  victory  over  death  and  the  infinite 
gain  of  the  future  life.*^" 

Mr.  Flint  championed  many  reforms.  He  deliv- 
ered some  of  his  most  telling  blows  against  dueling.**^ 
He  organized  and  addressed  temperance  societies. 
From  many  remarks  that  he  makes  we  may  judge  that 
he  was  himself  a  teetotaler  and  advocated  this  kind  of 
temperance  as  the  only  sure  cure  for  a  great  evil.*^^ 
He  detested  tobacco. 

He  was  always  strongly  opposed  to  partisan  politics. 
Many  of  his  keenest  shafts  were  directed  at  the  politi- 

480  por  a  discussion  of  Immortality  see  Notes  to  the  Art  of  Being  Happy, 
193-313,  especially,  304-312.  Here  is  a  typical  passage  from  page  311  of  this 
work: 

"For  myself  I  feel  that  I  am  immortal,  and  that  these  fellow  sojourners,  to 
whom  I  have  been  attached  by  the  affection  of  lonp;  intimac}',  and  the  recep- 
tion of  many  and  great  kindnesses,  will  exist  with  me  hereafter.  I  pretend 
to  conceive  nothing,  I  wish  to  enquire  nothing,  about  the  mode,  the  place 
and  circumstances.  I  should  as  soon  think  of  disturbing  myself,  bj'  endeavor- 
ing to  conceive  the  ideas  that  might  be  imparted  by  a  sixth  sense.  It  is 
suHicient  that  my  heait  declares,  that  a  being  who  has  seen  this  glorious 
world,  cherished  these  warm  affections,  entertained  these  illimitable  aspira- 
tions, felt  these  longings  after  immortality,  indulged  'these  thoughts,  that 
wander  through  eternity,'  cannot  have  been  doomed  by  Him,  who  gave 
them,  to  have  been  quenched  forever  in  annihilation.  Even  an  illusion  so 
glorious  would  be  worth  purchasing  at  the  price  of  a  world." 

481  Western  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  i,  453-461. 
*8- —  Idem,  vol.  ii,  79-97. 


27b  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

cians  of  his  day/"^  He  thought  it  a  matter  of  deep 
regret  tliat  all  well  bred  persons  did  not  banish  poli- 
tics as  a  subject  of  discussion  while  journeying,  for: 

What  is  it  to  a  traveler,  who  of  two  stupid  demagogues  are 
elected  to  congress,  or  who  made  the  heaviest  speech  at  a  cau- 
cus? *^* 

He  had  little  sympathy  with  radical  and  extremist 
of  any  kind.  He  was  not  a  Mason,  but  he  disapproved 
heartily  of  the  anti-masonic  excitement  consequent 
upon  the  Morgan  episode,  during  the  years  1826- 
1828.*^= 

Mr.  Flint  had  much  to  say,  and  that  in  his  most  se- 
rious vein,  about  slavery.  In  1825,  he  said:  "I  have 
never  owned  a  slave,  and  I  would  to  God,  there  had 
never  been  one  on  earth."  But  he  had  seen  the  insti- 
tution at  close  range.  If  he  knew  all  of  the  evils  con- 
nected with  it  he  knew  also,  all  that  could  be  said  for 
it.  Moreover  he  had  then  warm  friends,  and  soon 
after  sons,  who  owned  large  numbers  of  slaves.  He 
could  see  both  sides  of  the  question  and  was  compelled 
to  say  of  the  northern  attitude: 

But  when  I  hear  opinions  that  are  expressed  in  your  region, 
and  see  the  bitter  influences  of  misrepresentation  upon  this  sub- 
ject, and  read  the  intemperate  and  inflammatory  productions  of 
the  day,  productions,  which,  I  doubt  not,  are  in  many  instances 
got  up  merely  for  political  purposes,  I  tremble,  in  contemplating 
their  probable  influence  upon  public  feeling  at  the  South. ^®® 

If  there  were  space  it  would  be  a  pleasure  to  say 
much  about  Mr.  Flint's  family.  James  and  Hubbard 
were  prosperous  planters.  James  was  one  of  the  best 
and  most  noted  lawyers  in  the  south,  and  had  a  very 

483  ff^estern  Monthly  Rev.,  vol.  ni,  ^1  J.       "^  —  Idem,  vol.  iii,  169-181. 
■*^* —  Idem,  vol.  ii,  196.  *8^  Flint.  Recollections,  341-348. 


CHARACTERISTICS  277 

large  and  remunerative  practise.  He  was  an  officer 
in  the  Mexican  War.  He  was  a  quiet  and  methodical 
man.  The  yellow  fever,  after  taking  him,  carried  off, 
in  1855,  his  wife  and  two  of  his  children  within  a  few 
weeks.*"  Hubbard  was  a  painstaking  and  burden- 
bearing  man,  the  most  religious  one  of  the  five.  His 
old  slaves  long  prayed  for  "Massa  Hubbard."  Both  of 
these  brothers  lost  their  lives  by  the  yellow  fever,  con- 
tracted while  nursing  their  black  people  during  a 
fever  epidemic  in  1853 -dying  within  a  few  weeks  of 
each  other.  Emeline  and  Martha  died  during  the 
Civil  War.  Mrs.  E.  H.  Flint  is  said  to  have  refused 
one  million  dollars  for  her  property  shortly  before 
that  time.  All  five  had  children  except  Emeline. 
Micah's  two  sons  died  early.  Two  of  James's  four  chil- 
dren are  living:  Mrs.  Emeline  Flint  Seip,  Alexandria, 
Louisiana  and  James  Timothy  Flint  of  Nashville, 
Tennessee.  The  latter  has  three  daughters  but  no 
sons  and  the  name  of  Timothy  Flint  passes  with  this 
grandson.  Mrs.  Seip  has  four  sons,  approaching 
manhood,  two  of  whom  bear  the  honored  name  of 
Flint  as  given  names.  Mr.  Flint's  youngest  daughter, 
Martha,  who  became  Mrs.  McWaters,  has  one 
daughter  living,  Mrs.  E.  A.  Preston,  Walla  Walla, 
Washington.  She  also  has  children,  one  of  whom  is 
Mrs.  Skinner  of  Galveston,  Texas.  There  are  still 
other  grandchildren  of  Mr.  Flint  living  in  the  south. 
Several  of  Mr.  Flint's  grandchildren  have  shown  the 
same  active,  nervous,  and  poetic  nature  that  belonged 
to  their  grandfather.     The  family  traits  are  said  to  be 

*^'  For  a  biographical  sketch  of  James  Timothy  Flint,  see  Alice  Fortier's 
Louisiana,  vol.  ii,  143  ff.  Also,  Fredric  Seip's  letter  written  from  Alex- 
andria, La.,  Jan.  10,  1910,  in  Library  Harvard  University. 


278  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

marked  in  them,  and  I  have  had  many  opportunities 
through  their  correspondence  and  literary  produc- 
tions of  knowing  that  some  of  the  strong  features  of 
the  father  are  preserved  by  the  children  of  the  second 
and  third  generation/"*- 

Mr.  Flint  was  a  profoundly  religious  man.  He 
was  deeply,  genuinely  Christian,  in  all  his  acts  and 
thoughts.  Not  alone  his  preaching,  and  his  devoted 
service  upon  the  hardest  of  missionary  fields,  bear 
witness  to  his  religious  life,  but  the  great  mass  of  his 
writings  are  permeated  with  the  spirit  of  piet>'.  His 
stories  have  confessedly  a  moral  aim.  All  of  his  con- 
temporaries, who  speak  of  the  religious  side  of  his  life, 
bear  w^itness  to  its  warmth  and  depth. 

In  his  family  life,  religion  was  not  only  regarded  as 
a  matter  of  precept  and  practice,  but  as  an  institution. 
There  w^ere  morning  and  evening  prayers.  On  the 
Sabbath  there  were  special  services,  and  sermons  like 
those  of  Paley  were  read  by  some  member  of  the  fam- 
ily circle.*^^  His  prayer,  used  in  family  worship,  has 
been  preserved,  in  the  Bibles  of  more  than  one  of  his 
children.*®''  One  of  Flint's  best  poems,  "The  Being 
of  a  God"*®'  goes  more  deeply  into  his  thought  about 
God  than  any  of  his  prose.  At  the  same  time  it  is  full 
of  faith  and  hope. 

Timothy  Flint  was  in  full  sympathy,  and  often  in 
hearty  fellowship,  with  all  Protestant  sects  in  their 
practical  expressions  and  emotional  experiences  of  re- 

488  Several  letters  of  Emeline  Flint  Seip,  1907-1910,  in  Boston  Public 
Librarj'. 

4S9  Jfestern  Mofit/ily  Reviev:,  vol.  i,  747,  line  46. 

*»o  See  Appendix  D.  Also  manuscript  in  Librar\,  Harvard  University 
and  in  Library,  Yale  Universit}-. 

*^i  Western  Monthly  Revieii;  vol.  i,  528.     Also  Appendix  E. 


CHARACTERISTICS  279 

ligion.  In  these  matters  he  was  at  one  with  the  Ro- 
man church  itself.  It  was  only  when  a  sect  became 
exclusive  and  intolerant  toward  other  Christians,  that 
Mr.  Flint  parted  company  with  them.  It  is  Francis 
Berrian  that  appears  to  talk,  but  it  is  Mr.  Flint's 
notion  when  he  says  to  the  priest: 

My  heart  subscribes  to  all  your  forms  of  prayer,  neither  am  I 
displeased  with  some  of  your  imposing  forms  of  worship.*"^ 

Again  in  the  Recollections  he  says  there  can  be  no 
question  about  the  revolting  contradictions  of  the  real 
presence,  the  infallibility  of  the  Pope,  and  other  ad- 
ditions of  the  dark  ages,  but  their  reverence  for  and 
attachment  to  their  church  and  ministry,  unwilling- 
ness to  dispute  about  articles  of  faith,  and  their  will- 
ingness to  sacrifice  personal  interests  to  the  common 
cause,  might  not  be  regarded  by  Protestants  without 
utility.  He  believed  the  Catholics  were  right  in 
thinking  that  theological  disputations  were  ruinous  in 
their  tendency,  and  that  the  multitudes  never  had,  did 
not  then,  and  never  would  have,  "an  influential  faith, 
except  it  be  an  implicit  one.""^ 

He  was  in  deep  sympathy  with  the  Episcopal 
church  in  its  marked  tendency  to  put  the  emphasis 
upon  worship  and  work,  and  in  its  swinging  away 
from  the  "horrible  and  revolting  doctrines  of  Calvin- 
ism and  Hopkinsianism"  which  make  one  shudder 
even  in  the  reading.  He  thought  the  spirits  of  Dodd- 
ridge, Baxter,  and  Watts,  with  others  of  their  kind, 
had  found  a  refuge  in  the  Episcopal  church,  since 
they  had  been  driven  from  their  gentle  and  beneficent 
rule  in  the  New  England  churches,  by  the  tempest  of 

*^2  Flint,  Timothy.     Francis  Berrian,  vol.  i,  217. 
■••'^  Flint.     Recolltitions,  117,  118. 


28o  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

fierce  and  contending  opinions  then  raging.  But  he 
could  not  understand  how  the  liberal  views  of  the  Gos- 
pel which  prevailed  in  the  Episcopal  communion, 
could  be  made  to  agree  with  the  thirty-nine  articles. 
When  he  came  to  the  apostolic  sanction  of  the  Episco- 
pacy, as  established  in  the  English  church,  he  pro- 
tested indignantly.     He  said : 

It  seems  to  us  altogetlier  the  wrong  time  in  the  day,  for  a 
man  of  calm,  temperate  and  enlarged  spirit  of  the  author,  to 
come  forward  with  the  proposition,  that  the  extL-rnal  form  of  the 
constitution  and  government  of  any  church  is  of  Divine  appoint- 
ment. 

This  he  thought  was  descending  to  the  common  secta- 
rian plane,  and  making  claims  which  were  equally 
valueless  whether  made  by  the  oldest  or  the  newest 
sect.""*  It  may  be  of  interest  as  showing  sectarian  ten- 
dencies to  remark  about  the  religious  affiliations  of 
Mr.  Flint's  family.  Near  the  close  of  his  life  they 
were  inclined  to  Unitarianism.  James  Timothy  was 
a  Spiritualist  and  prepared  a  work  in  manuscript  upon 
this  subject.  The  present  generation -and  those  im- 
mediately preceding  them -are  all  Episcopalians,  lib- 
eral, and  tolerant  generally,  in  their  opinions  and  prac- 
tises of  religion.  They  are  still  a  strongly  religious 
family.*^' 

Mr.  Flint  had  seen  the  immense  amount  of  good 
that  was  done  by  the  Methodists,  "on  the  very  skirts 
of  civilization,  and  among  a  peculiar  race  of  people, 
upon  whom  no  other  denomination  of  Christian  min- 
isters would  be  likely  to  operate."  He  admitted  the 
zeal,  the  affectionate  spirit  and  the  brotherly  love,  the 

*9*  H'estern  Monthly  Revieii;  vol.  ii,  386-389. 
■*®^  Letters  of  Mrs.  Seip,  1907,   1908. 


CHARACTERISTICS  28 1 

untiring  and  unshrinking  purpose,  and  more  than  all, 
the  character  of  sentiment,  tenderness,  and  bearing 
that  marked  their  worship.  It  united,  too,  he 
thought,  little  as  it  had  the  credit  for  the  union,  "a 
greater  degree  of  liberality  with  its  well  known  zeal, 
than  any  other  denomination,  except  the  Liberal 
Christians."  But  he  aimed  to  be  impartial.  There 
were  things  in  the  Methodist  body  that  were  foreign 
to  their  true  spirit,  such  as  noise,  groanings,  clapping 
of  hands,  stamping,  shouting,  and  other  parts  of  what 
might  be  "called  the  manual  exercise  of  the  Methodist 
worship."  This,  he  says,  was  inconsistent  with  their 
origin,  culture,  and  the  good  sense  of  many  of  their 
people."®**  He  protested  against  the  use  of  their  splen- 
did esprit  du  corps  for  political  and  selfish  ends.  He 
saw  the  danger  there  was  in  their  covering  up  from 
their  own  view  and  attempting  to  hide  from  the  world, 
some  very  common  sins  under  the  warm  cloak  of  their 
piety.  This  he  exposed  mercilessly  in  his  picture  of 
the  "Reverend  Thomas  S."  and  his  dealings  with  a 
wealthy  young  heiress  committed  to  his  care.  This 
man  is  presented  as  follows: 

With  religion  always  in  his  mouth,  and  enough  of  morals  and 
strictness  to  be  always  respectable;  full  of  long  and  reiterated 
observances,  and  apparently  always  having,  as  his  phrase  was, 
the  world  under  his  feet;  aiming  always,  too,  in  his  religious 
exercises  at  the  feelings,  placing  much  dependance  upon  frames 
of  mind,  and  considering  the  exaltation  or  the  depression  of  feel- 
ing, as  the  graduated  marks  of  nearness  to  God,  or  distance  from 
him,  it  was  no  wonder  that  he  gained  an  increased  hold  upon 
the  sensitive  and  thoughtful  nature  of  his  fair  associate.  There  was 
something  imposing,  too,  in  this  assumed  austerity  of  a  young 
498  Jf^estern  Monthly  Rcvieic,  vol.  ii,  476. 


282  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

and  handsome  man,  something  sublime  in  this  apparent  conquest 
of  all  earthly  affections.*^^ 

Mr.  Flint  was  naturally  a  Presbyterian  but  not  a 
Calvinist.  He  did  not  think  that  the  New  England 
churches  at  the  close  of  the  Colonial  period  were  Cal- 
vinistic.  He  thought  the  men  upon  whom  the  min- 
istry of  that  period  had  fed,  Watts,  Baxter,  Doddridge 
*  and  more  than  all  Matthew  Henry,  were  orthodox  in 
theory  and  heretical  in  practise -if  their  phrase  and 
term  were  Calvinistic,  their  life  and  practise  were  Ar- 
minian/^*  He  thought  they  were  little  interested  in 
the  Athanasian  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  and  that  if 
they  had  been  asked  categorically  if  they  believed  in 
the  strict  unity  of  the  Deity  they  would  have  given  but 
one  answer.  Mr.  Flint  was  a  Presbyterian,  as  he  con- 
ceived that  party  to  have  been  in  the  great  days  of 
Puritan  thought.  He  believed  the  Trinitarian  party 
in  New  England  was  sectarian  and  bigoted,  that  it  was 
pulling  down  the  traditions  and  institutions  of  the 
fathers."**  He  believed  they  were  mocking  the  spirit 
of  the  Pilgrims  which  they  pretended  to  follow. 

One  of  the  leading  characters,  and  the  most  clearly 
drawn  one  in  his  Shoshonee  Valley  is  Elder  Wood,  the 
Baptist  trapper  missionary.  His  head  is  Calvinistic. 
His  sermons  to  the  Indians  are  occasionally  of  the  high 
Calvinistic  type.  Upon  such  occasions  the  Indians 
can  make  nothing  of  the  elder's  teaching.  They  easily 
drive  him  into  a  corner.  But  they  believe  in  the  heart 
and  life  of  their  preacher.  With  his  theology  he  per- 
plexed and  repelled  them.  With  his  humanity  and 
religion  he  wins  them.     This  character  is  a  concrete 

*^'  Flint,  Timothy.     Francis  Berrian,  vol.  ii,  281. 
49S  jyestern  Monthly  Rcvieiv,  vol.  iii,  369,  370. 
*^^ —  Idem;   also  vol.  ii,  339-345. 


CHARACTERISTICS  283 

expression  of  Mr.  Flint's  position  in  reference  to  Cal- 
vinism and  Presbyterianism. 

So  far  as  he  followed  the  Unitarians  of  the  early 
Channing  type,  it  was  not  only  because  he  was  very 
closely  related  to  them  by  strong  early  ties  but  because 
he  felt  that  they  best  preserved  the  spirit  of  the  earlier 
age  and  ministry,  which  he  so  much  admired.  It 
seemed  to  him  that  there  never  had  been  a  purer  or 
better  ministry  than  that  of  New  England  a  half  cen- 
tury before  his  time.  Their  "preaching  was  afifection- 
ate,  persuasive,  mild,  paternal." "°°  It  was  a  time 
when. 

Religion  was  understood  to  be  a  matter  of  practise  and  good 
feeling;  and  the  theories  by  which  good  men  became  religious, 
were  little  investigated,  the  people  being  more  concerned  to  gather 
the  good  fruits,  than  to  search  out  the  elementary  principles  of 
its  origin  and  development.^"^ 

The  Unitarian  party- Flint  called  it  the  "Liberal 
Christian"  party- appeared  to  him  to  adhere  most 
strictly  to  the  simple  covenants  of  the  fathers  and  to 
avoid  the  dogma  of  Calvinism  or  other  isms.  It  ap- 
peared to  him,  as  it  may  easily  appear  to  the  present 
day  student  of  those  times,  that  the  Unitarian  party 
taken  as  a  whole  was  the  most  tolerant,  and  undog- 
matic  body  of  the  period. 

He  would  like  to  have  believed,  he  says : 

That  the  spirit  of  bigotry  had  not  found  its  way  even  into  the 
ranks  of  the  unitarians.  .  .  True,  they  do  not  wield  fire  and 
fagot.  True,  they  contend  not  for  the  converting  influence  of 
inquisition  and  dungeons. 

But  they  are  not  above  a  little  harmless  ridicule,  of 
those  who  hold  that  Christ  is  worthy  of  worship,  as  he 

600  ffgsiern  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  i,  685. 
'^"^  —  Idem,  vol.  iii,  369. 


284  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

himself  does,  dp  above  hints  that  such  a  person  is 
weak,  credulous,  obtuse  of  intellect,  and  ought  to  be 
sent  where  people  are  less  enlightened.  Theirs  are 
these  "mild  and  harmless  expedients,  that  may  be 
adopted  with  the  most  Christ-like  tempers." 

The  truth  is,  the  spirit  of  man  is  naturally  a  persecutinti;  spir- 
it. .  .  Every  one  wishes  to  bend  every  other  mind  to  his 
opinion.  .  .  The  leaders  of  all  sects  wish  to  exclude  all  light, 
but  that,  which  tends  to  confirm  their  followers  in  their  present 
persuasions.  Every  one  talks  about  the  omnipotence  of  truth ; 
and  yet  every  one  dreads,  that  any  other  views,  than  his  own, 
should  be  presented  to  his  disciple.^*^- 

With  the  more  advanced  biblical  and  rational  po- 
sition of  Theodore  Parker,  Flint  was  not  in  sympathy. 
With  the  rationalism,  the  swinging  away  from  re- 
vealed religion  and  the  reducing  of  Christ  to  the  ranks 
of  humanity  which  marked  one  wing  of  Unitarianism 
in  its  second  or  third  generations,  Flint  had  no  sym- 
pathy whatever.  He  says  concerning  the  person  of 
Christ: 

We  rcf^ret  the  application  of  that  ingeniiit)'  of  unitarians, 
which  denies  that  Christ  is  the  object  of  worship  in  the  Scriptures. 

It  is  to  be  remembered  that  no  party  then  raised  the 
question  of  fallibility  concerning  the  teachings  of  the 
Scriptures.     Flint  continues: 

We  have  no  fears  of  giving  him  too  high  a  place  in  our 
thoughts,  or  of  placing  on  him  too  entire  a  reliance.  If  the 
gospel  and  the  epistles  do  not  give  to  the  Saviour  a  claim  far 
above  any  prophet,  apostle,  martyr,  example,  principality,  angel, 
or  power,  if  the  apostles  do  not  assign  to  him  a  high  and  peculiar 
place  in  their  faith,  thoughts  and  hopes,  then  words  to  us  would 
cease  to  have  a  meaning. 

He  thinks  that  the  contention  between,  "unitarian" 

502  ff^gstern  Monthly  Review:,  vol.  ii,  345. 


CHARACTERISTICS  285 

and  ''trinitarian,"  like  the  greater  portion  of  all  theo- 
logical disputes,  is  a  dispute  about  terms.     If  they 

Were  compelled  to  be  silent,  until  they  had  precise  ideas  about 
what  is  the  point  of  division  and  dispute  between  them,  we  are 
clear,  that  the  greater  portion  of  the  dispute  would  be  consigned 
to  oblivion.  Worship  is  a  feeling,  a  homage  of  the  mind  and 
of  the  heart,  and  the  object  not  the  less  real,  because  utterly 
incomprehensible,  either  as  three,  or  one.^"^ 

He  wished  to  leave  the  question  where  the  Scrip- 
tures left  it.  He  did  not  believe  that  the  abstract  name 
and  dignit}^  of  the  Saviour  or  of  the  Deity  was  a  thing 
that  had  been  revealed  to  us,  and  even  if  God  had  at- 
tempted to  reveal  it,  mankind  would  not  have  been 
able  to  understand  it.'"^  In  a  word,  he  believed  in  the 
Trinity  of  Revelation  and  experience,  but  not  in  the 
Trinity  of  Athanasius. 

Sectarianism  in  religion  was  Mr.  Flint's  particular 
aversion.  He  said  about  1832  in  the  notes  to  his  Art 
of  Being  Happy :  with  the  fierce  war  cry  of  sects  in 
religion,  in  their  acrimonious  and  never  ending  con- 
tests about  abstract  terms  without  a  meaning,  their 
combats  about  the  vague  and  technical  phrases  of 
formulas  of  faith,  I  have  long  since  had  nothing  to  do. 
For  many  years  they  have  rung  on  mv  ear  like  the 
distant  thunder  of  clouds  that  have  passed  by. 

This  meditating  spirit  is  the  cue  to  Flint's  religious 
position.  Wherever  he  found  that,  whether  among 
the  Orthodox  as  he  often  did,  or  the  Liberals,  he 
counted  himself  one  with  them.  He  did  not  believe 
in  logic  as  the  servant  of  religion.  He  thought, 
"Disputation  and  discussion,  under  the  mistaken  idea 

503  ff^estern  Monthly  Re'vieiu,  vol.  ii,  280. 
50*  —  Idem. 


286  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

of  enlightening  the  understanding,  tend  to  banish  the 
small  remains  of  religion  from  among  us."'""'^  He 
loved  Matthew  Henry  because  he  was  devotional - 
"orthodox  in  term  and  phrase,  but  evangelical  and 
liberal  in  temper  and  spirit."^*"'  He  was  devoted  to 
the  French  romantic  writers  because  they  were  poets 
rather  than  theologians.  Villemain  studied  the  liter- 
ature and  history  of  the  past  not  for  "their  dogmas, 
but  for  their  piet}^  and  enthusiasm."  ^"'  Lamartine  he 
thrilled  under,  because  he  had  the  pathos,  melancholy, 
originality,  and  shaggy  vastness  of  Byron  without  his 
skeptical,  misanthropic  and  revolting  epicurism.^"* 
More  than  by  other  Frenchmen  he  was  moved  by 
Chateaubriand  in  his  Le  Genie  du  Christianisme.  He 
spoke  in  the  exalted  language  of  poetry  and  not  "in 
the  shibboleth  and  terms  of  a  sectarian."  ^"^  He  ad- 
mired Paley  for  one  reason  particularly- that  he  so 
nearly  avoided  "all  disputable  points  among  the  sects, 
and  all  doctrinal  matter  of  doubtful  authority,  or 
ambiguous  interpretation."  "° 

Mr.  Flint  always  thought  of  religion  as  a  natural 
sentiment  in  man.  He  thought  a  person  left  to  grow 
on  a  desert  island  would  have  a  religion.  He  says  on 
this  point: 

It  is  an  inwrought  feeling  in  our  mental  constitution,  an  un- 
written, universal,  and  everlasting  gospel,  pointing  to  God  and 
immortality'.''^^ 

5°5  Flint.     Recollections,  117. 

506  fyestern  Monthly  Review;  vol.  iii,  370,  line  18. 

«o"—  Idem,  264. 

5°8  —  Idem,  26,  27. 

5°3  —  Idem,  vol.  i,  609-625. 

'^o-'ldem,  746. 

*ii  Flint,  Timothy.     Art  of  Being  Happy,  230. 


CHARACTERISTICS  287 

Nevertheless  he  believed  religion  was  not  unreason- 
able.    He  says : 

We  are  bound  to  believe  things,  that  are  above  reason,  on  the 
testimony  of  God.  But  God,  the  author  of  light  and  order,  has 
not  called  upon  us,  any  where,  to  believe  things,  that  are  contrary 
to  reason. ''^- 

He  was  in  sympathy  with  scientific  exegetical  study 
of  the  Bible,  for  he  thought  it  all  important  to  know 
its  teachings.''^^  He  was  not  much  in  sympathy  with 
the  theological  schools.  He  thought  Andover  in 
1830  was  as  far  from  Princeton  orthodoxy  on  one  side 
as  it  was  from  the  Unitarians  on  the  other.  This  had 
resulted  from  the  influence  of  such  men  as  Edwards, 
Hopkins,  Emmons,  and  Worcester,  and  from  its  prox- 
imity to  the  "warm  crater  of  notions."'"' 

Mr.  Flint's  conclusion  as  to  the  essence  of  religion, 
first  stated  in  his  Recollections  and  held  throughout 
his  life,  is: 

Religion  is  love,  love  to  God  and  to  men ;  if  there  should  ever 

be  anything  like  assent  to  a  common  faith  on  the  earth,  it  would 

be  the  experimental  religion,  the  religion  of  the  heart.^^^ 


^1*  Western  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  ii,  342.  See  also  the  review  of  "Let- 
ters on  the  Logos,"  by  Chas.  W.  Upham  and  the  "Trinitarian  Controversy" 
by  Dr.  Charles  Lowell,  in  the  Re-vieiv,  vol.  ii,  233-246,  269-281. 

613  _  /^^,„. 

*"'* — •  Idem,  vol.  iii,  370. 
515  Flint.     Recollections,  uy. 


APPENDIX  A 

Itinerary  of  Timothy  Flint 

1780  Born,  North  Reading,  Massachusetts 

1795  Phillips  Academy,  Andover 

1796  Enters  Harvard  College 

1800  Graduates  at  Harvard 

1 801  Teaches  in  an  Academy  at  Cohasset.  Studies 
Theology 

1802  Preaches  at  Marblehead  and  is  married  there.  Is 
settled  at  Lunenburg,  and  ordained 

1 814  Resigns.     Mission  in  New  Hampshire 

1815  Mission  in  Massachusetts  and  New  York.  Mis- 
sion to  the  west.  Cincinnati,  Indiana,  and  Ken- 
tucky 

1816  St.  Louis  and  St.  Charles 

1819  Arkansas.     New  Madrid,  Missouri 

1820  Jackson,  Missouri 

1 82 1  St.  Charles,  Missouri 

1822  New  Orleans 

1823  West  Florida.  New  Orleans.  Alexandria,  Louis- 
iana. 

1825  New  England  and  return  to  Alexandria 

1826  New  England  via  Gulf  and  Atlantic.  Return 
via  Cincinnati 

1827  Removes  to  Cincinnati 

1828  Visits  New  England 


290  ITINERARY  OF  TIMOTHY  FLINT 

1829  Visits  New  England 

1832  Visit  to  Alexandria,  Louisiana;  possibly  South 
America 

1833  Visits  New  England.    Lives  in  New  York  City 

1834  Removes  to  Alexandria,  Louisiana;  travels  in 
New  England,  Canada,  and  possibly  Europe 

1835  In  Cuba,  New  England,  and  on  the  Great  Lakes. 
1836-1838  New  England  journeys  (?) 

183Q  Visits  New  England 

1840  Goes  to  North   Reading.       Died  August   16, 
buried  at  Salem 


APPENDIX  B 

Flint's  Letter  of  Resignation  to  the  Missionary 
Society  OF  Connecticut"' 

Rev.  Abel  Flint,  Secry.  Miss.  Soc.  Con.,  Hartford, 
Con. 

Rev.  and  dear  Sir,  I  learned  at  St.  Louis  yesterday 
without  surprise  but  not  without  regret,  that  reports 
unfavorable  to  me  had  reached  Hartford.  Mr. 
Beebee,  son  in  law  of  Mr.  Hempsted,  has  been  in  your 
region.  He  is  hostile  to  missionaries  in  general,  and 
to  me  in  particular,  and  I  had  every  thing  to  fear  from 
the  representations  of  such  a  man.  To  the  reports  I 
will  be  as  frank,  sincere  and  brief  as  possible.  Wheri 
I  left  Cincinnati,  I  had  loaned  money,  which  I  could 
recover  in  no  other  way,  but  in  goods.  They  made 
but  a  trifle  and  would  be  nothing  without  more.  My 
son  was  an  excellent  accountant.  My  brother  and  son 
wished  to  make  the  experiment  of  store  keeping  to- 
gether. I  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  business,  and 
was  seldom  in  the  store  oftener,  than  once  in  a  week. 
The  experiment  was  unfortunate,  but  I  was  resigned. 

When  I  came  here,  I  found,  that  I  had  no  alterna- 
tive, but  either  labor  for  myself  and  family,  or  injus- 
tice  to   my  creditors,   and   absolute  want.      I   will 

^1^  Letter  preserved  in  the  Congregational  House  [Hartford,  Conn.], 
Archives  of  the  Missionary  Societ}^  of  Connecticut. 


292  APPENDIX   B 


venture  to  affirm,  that  no  other  man  with  a  family  and 
my  means  [would]  have  had  any  other  alternative. 
In  the  face  [of  sedejntary  habits  of  thirty  five  years 
standing,  of  ill  health,  and  what  is  still  harder  to  the 
iiesh,  in  the  face  of  the  opinion  and  example  of  this 
indolent  people-  i  have  labored  in  the  intervals  of  my 
other  duty,  and  that  severely -and  each  member  of 
my  family  has  labored -my  wife,  slender,  as  she  is, 
often  until  midnight,  after  the  toils  of  a  school  through 
the  day.  We  have  supported  in  the  midst  of  poverty 
and  embarrassment  a  decent  and  hospitable  standing 
and  a  character  of  integrity,  which  enables  me  to  loan, 
when,  and  where  1  choose,  an  admission  of  integrity, 
which  the  people  of  this  country  seldom  pay  to  a  poor 
man.  But  at  the  same  time  I  have  made  as  frequent 
excursions  to  preach  and  distribute  bibles,  as  any 
other  missionary  in  the  country.  My  scene  has  been 
laid  in  the  wildest  part  of  it.  I  have  seen  seven,  or 
eight  ephemeral  and  holiday  missionaries  commence 
and  decline  in  my  neighborhood.  Three  respectable 
ministers  have  been  here  with  a  view  to  settle  in  this 
region,  have  become  discouraged  and  are  gone,  since 
I  have  been  here.  Twelve  at  least  have  been  in  this 
way  in  this  country- they  are  all  gone.  Mr.  Math- 
ews, than  whom  a  more  devoted  minister  in  my  mind 
does  not  breathe,  is  now  insulted  and  left  by  his  con- 
gregation, and  he  is  firm,  independent  and  useful  still. 
Mr.  Giddings  has  his  full  share  of  trial  and  opposi- 
tion. 

I  also,  have  had  enemies,  and  bitter  ones  in  this 
place.  I  have  been  at  once  popular  and  unpopular 
during  all  of  my  residence  here.     To  my  face  I  have 


LETTER  OF  RESIGNATION  293 

always  received  the  most  pointed  respect.  My  con- 
gregations at  this  time  are  larger  by  far,  than  they 
were,  when  I  came  to  this  place.  They  are  larger, 
than  when  Mr.  Mathews,  or  Mr.  Giddings  preached 
here,  or  other  ministers,  who  are  known. 

A  number  of  religious  characters  have  moved  into 
St.  Louis,  since  I  left  there  and  have  altered  the  aspect 
of  that  place- and  a  baptist  minister  [Peck?]  has  ren- 
dered himself  conspicuous  there.  There  are  hopeful 
appearances,  and  there  is  also  rivalry  and  opposition. 
But,  when  I  left  it,  there  was  but  one  Pres.  family  in 
the  place.  St.  Charles  is  now  what  that  place  [then 
was.]  Religion,  when  I  came  here  was  considered 
contemptible.  The  phalanx  of  opposition  was  in 
array  from  one  end  of  the  street  to  the  other.  Why 
did  they  invite  me  here?  On  speculation.  A  min- 
ister-a  church -a  school -are  words  to  flourish  in  an 
advertisement  to  sell  lots.  They  spoke  of  Mr.  Gid- 
dings as  good  and  devoted,  but  feeble.  They  paid  me 
a  similar  compliment.  They  probably  misinterpret- 
ed us  both.  When  I  brought  terror  into  their  billiard- 
rooms,  and  a  blush  into  their  faces  at  beholding  their 
likeness  depicted  with  independence  and  fidelity  of 
intention  at  least,  they  began  to  talk  of  starving  me 
out.  I  located  a  New  Madrid  claim  on  an  Island 
above  this  town.  The  clamor  of  Speculation  was 
raised  against  me -for  they  thought  me  getting  in  a 
situation  to  take  care  of  myself.  They  learned  my 
connection  with  your  society,  and  no  doubt  might  at 
that  time  have  obtained  a  request  to  you  to  withdraw 
your  patronage.  I  could  easily  give  you  a  volume  of 
detail  upon  the  subject;  but  you  know  human  nature, 


294  APPENDIX   B 


and  can  fill  in  the  outline.  I  shall  not  attempt  a  vin- 
dication of  my  course.  I  knew,  as  well,  as  another, 
that  my  tone  of  remonstrance  has  not  been  popular  for 
the  moment -but  I  venture  to  affirm -that  there  is  no 
minister  in  this  territory,  who  has  a  better  share  of  the 
general  respect,  wherever  I  am  known.  The  best 
families  in  this  place  have  their  children  in  Mrs. 
Flint's  school.  I  am  poor  but  respected  and  it  is  the 
hardest  country  that  I  have  yet  known,  in  which  to 
unite  poverty  and  respect.  I  have  two  applications 
to  settle  in  regions  near  this,  where  I  am  as  well 
known,  as  here.  And  in  taking  leave  of  your  respec- 
table Society,  I  aver,  with  a  pride,  that  I  hope  is  hon- 
est, that  its  honor  and  interests  have  been  supported 
not  only  with  fidelity  of  intention  but  with  a  good 
degree  of  success.  If  this  be  boasting  I  hope  you  will 
charge  to  the  occasion  and  not  to  me  the  necessity.  I 
make  no  doubt- that  impartial  and  respectable  people 
will  amply  confirm  this  statement. 

You  may  ask  why  I  have  not  organized  churches? 
Not  because  I  have  not  been  as  frequently  invited  to 
do  it,  as  brother  Giddings.  The  question  has  been 
frequently  proposed  to  me  here.  I  have  had  two  rea- 
sons the  one  secret-  the  other  avowed.  I  have  thought 
a  premature  organization  of  a  church  might  injure 
the  interests  it  would  wish  to  subserve.  I  have  deemed 
the  elements  too  unsettled  and  character  too  equivocal, 
and  the  numbers  too  small  in  the  instances,  where  I 
have  received  requests  of  this  kind.  I  have  seen  so 
much  coloring,  too,  in  missionary  statements,  that  I 
have  feared  to  blazon  what  little  has  been  done.  I 
have  hoped  to  do  but  little  more,  than  sow  a  seed  for 


LETTER  OF  RESIGNATION  295 

the  generations  to  come.  Another  reason  is,  that 
I  have  been  taught  to  consider  my  duty  as  subordinate 
in  this  country.  Notwithstanding  my  age,  notwith- 
standing pride  whispered  me,  that  I  was  not  fitted  for 
that  station,  I  have  loved  brother  Giddings,  have  sup- 
ported a  cheerful  cooperation  in  subordination  to  his 
views,  and  have  yielded  to  him  the  place  of  fame.  I 
have  said  enough  perhaps  too  much -but  what  I  have 
said  is  necessary  to  my  feelings. 

I  have  passed  through  good  report  and  through  evil 
report.  I  have  endured  my  "cruel  mockings"  and 
my  perils  from  "false  brethren."  The  fiercest  spirits 
of  the  union  are  here.  Every  thing  is  in  a  State  of 
chaos -and  in  looking  back  upon  the  ways  through 
which  God  has  led  me -I  bless  him  in  my  inmost 
soul -that  I  have  gone  through  my  trials -as  well -as 
I  have.  I  came  naked  here.  I  am  naked  still.  My 
health  is  poor,  but  my  confidence  in  the  God  whom  I 
serve,  is  deep  and  unabated.  He  will  some  how  or 
other  "spread  a  table  for  us  in  the  wilderness,"  and 
though  no  longer  under  the  protection  of  your  So- 
ciety, I  shall  not  the  less  attempt  to  Spread  the  name 
and  the  Salvation  of  my  Redeemer.  I  respectfully 
resign  my  commission,  as  missionary,  and  acknowl- 
edge, that  I  have  received  a  compensation  in  full  of 
all  demands. 

In  taking  leave  of  your  respectable  society  I  should 
do  injustice  to  my  feelings,  did  I  not  admit  that  it  has 
treated  me  with  great  kindness ;  and  that  I  heartily  ap- 
prove the  vigilance  with  which  it  inspects  its  distant 
missionaries.  And  though  not  one  of  them  in  name 
and  office,  I  hope  I  shall  still  be  in  heart  and  affection. 


296  APPKNDIX    B 


I  earnestly  pray  the  Great  Shepherd  to  bless  you,  and 
give  you  the  best  earthly  compensation  -  the  conscious- 
ness of  doing  good,  and  the  brightest  crown  in  hea- 
ven-that,  which  will  be  awarded  to  those  "who  have 
turned  many  unto  righteousness." 

Respectfully  yours,  T.  FLINT. 


APPENDIX  C 

MiCAH  P.  Flint's  "Lines,  on  Passing  the  Gilwe 
OF  My  Sister" 

In  descending  the  Mississippi,  there  is  a  long  sweep- 
ing point  of  heavily  timbered  bottom,  just  opposite 
the  second  Chickasaw  Bluff,  a  name  which  is  given  to 
one  of  those  peninsulas  of  high  land,  which  jut  into  the 
alluvion,  and  approach  the  river  from  time  to  time  on 
its  eastern  side.  In  this  bottom,  at  the  distance  of 
about  two  hundred  and  fifty  paces  from  the  bank  of 
the  river,  there  is  a  little  grave,  in  which  are  deposited 
the  remains  of  my  youngest  sister.  She  was  born  on 
our  passage  from  Arkansas  to  St.  Charles,  in  the  fall 
of  1819,  and  survived  only  three  days.  At  that  time, 
the  settlements  on  the  Mississippi  were  so  thin,  and 
remote,  that  there  were  often  intervals  of  unbroken 
forests,  extending  from  twenty  to  thirty  miles  along 
its  shores.  It  was  in  the  midst  of  one  of  these,  and  in 
a  night  of  storms,  that  this  little  infant  was  born ;  and 
it  is  there,  that  she  was  buried.  We  were  ascending 
the  river  in  a  small  batteau,  and  were  entirely  alone, 
having  been  left  by  our  hands  a  few  miles  below.  Our 
solitary  situation -the  circumstances  of  her  birth -the 
place  of  her  burial -all,  conspired  to  make  a  deep 
and  lasting  impression  on  my  mind.      Some  years 


298  APPENDIX   C 


afterwards,  1  passed  the  same  place,  in  the  spring  of 
the  year,  on  my  way  up  the  river,  in  a  steam  boat.  Be- 
fore we  arrived  there,  I  had  stolen  away  from  the 
crowded  bustle  of  the  cabin,  to  a  more  secluded  place 
on  the  top  of  the  boat,  that  I  might  indulge  my  feel- 
ings without  observation,  or  restraint.  1  shall  not 
attempt  to  describe  them  now.  I  felt  a  desire  to  con- 
secrate the  memory  of  this  "desert  born"  and  "desert 
buried,"  in  the  minds  of  some,  whose  friendship  has 
been,  and  ever  will  be,  dear  to  me. 

Lines,  on  Passing  the  Grave  of  My  Sister''' 

On  yonder  shore,- On  yonder  shore. 
Now  verdant  with  its  depth  of  shade. 

Beneath  the  white-armM  sycamore. 
There  is  a  little  infant  laid. 

Forgive  this  tear.     A  brother  weeps. 

'Tis  there  the  faded  flowret  sleeps. 

She  sleeps  alone.     She  sleeps  alone. 

The  summer's  forests  o'er  her  wave ; 
And  sighing  winds  at  Autumn  moan 

Around  the  little  stranger's  grave, 
As  though  they  murmur'd,  at  the  fate 
Of  one  so  lone  and  desolate. 

In  sounds  that  seem  like  sorrow's  own, 
Their  funeral  dirges  faintly  creep; 

Then  deep'ning  to  an  organ  tone. 
In  all  their  solemn  cadence  sweep, 

And  pour  unheard,  along  the  wild, 

Their  desert-anthem  o'er  a  child. 


^^"^  Western  Monthly  Re^cneii:,  vol.  i,  651-653. 


LINES  BY  MICAH  P.  FLINT  299 

She  came,  and  pass'd.     Can  I  forget, 

How  we,  whose  hearts  had  hail'd  her  birth, 

E'er  three  autumnal  suns  had  set, 
Consign'd  her  to  her  mother  Earth? 

Joys,  and  their  memories  pass  away; 

But  griefs  are  deeper  trac'd,  than  they. 

That  little  group ;  - 1  see  them  now. 
As  when  I  knelt  among  them,  there, 

And  saw  our  father's  pallid  brow 
Uncover'd  to  the  desert  air ; 

As,  in  the  midst,  he  knelt  to  pray 

Beside  the  bier,  on  which  she  lay. 

Again,  I  see  each  pale  cheek  flush ; 

Again  the  burning  tear-drop  start. 
And  mark  the  deep  and  voiceless  gush 

Of  feelings -such  as  wring  the  heart. 
That  grave -the  spade -the  coffin -pall, 
Aye,  even  yet,  I  see  them  all. 

We  laid  her  in  her  narrow  cell, 

We  heap'd  the  soft  mould  on  her  breast. 

And  parting  tears,  like  rain-drops  fell 
Upon  her  lonely  place  of  rest. 

May  Angels  guard  it; -may  they  bless 

Her  slumbers  in  the  wilderness. 

She  sleeps  alone.     She  sleeps  alone. 

For  all  unheard,  on  yonder  shore. 
The  sweeping  flood  with  torrent  moan, 

At  evening  lifts  its  solemn  roar, 
As,  in  one  broad,  eternal  tide, 
Its  rolling  waters  onward  glide. 


300  APPENDIX   C 


There  is  no  marble  monument, 
There  is  no  stone,-  with  graven  lie, 

To  tell  of  love,  and  virtue  blent, 
In  one,  almost  too  good  to  die. 

We  needed  no  such  useless  trace, 

To  point  us  to  her  resting  place. 

The  pilgrim,  as  he  wanders  by, 

May  see,  indeed,  no  trace,  from  whence 

To  learn,  that  he  is  treading  nigh 
The  sleeping  dust  of  innocence ; 

But  there  are  hearts,  by  whom  that  spot. 

In  death,  alone,  will  be  forgot. 

She  sleeps  alone.     She  sleeps  alone. 

But  now,  the  Spring  hath  pass'd  her  bier, 
With  flowery  crown,  and  verdant  zone, 

To  wake  again  the  slumbering  year; 
And  all  around,  on  joyous  wing. 
The  forest  songsters  flit  and  sing. 

She  sleeps  alone.     She  sleeps  alone. 

But  midst  the  tears  of  April  showers. 
The  Genius  of  the  wild  hath  strown 

His  germs  of  fruits,  his  fairest  flowers, 
And  cast  his  robe  of  vernal  bloom. 
In  guardian  fondness  o'er  her  tomb. 

She  sleeps  alone.     She  sleeps  alone. 

But,  yearly,  is  her  grave-turf  drest. 
And  still,  the  summer  vines  are  thrown. 

In  annual  wreaths  across  her  breast, 
And,  still,  the  sighing  Autumn  grieves, 
And  strews  the  hallow'd  spot  with  leaves. 


APPENDIX     D 

The  Family  Prayer  of  Timothy  Flint  "* 

O!  God  our  Heavenly  Father,  we  rejoice  that  Thou, 
the  Lord  God,  gracious,  merciful,  wise,  and  omnip- 
otent, reigneth ;  and  hast  sent  Thy  Son  Jesus  Christ  our 
Savior,  to  declare  Thy  Word  and  to  save  us  from  our 
sins.  We  thank  Thee  for  all  that  Thou  art,  hast  been 
and  will  be  to  us,  and  we  confide  that  as  Thou  has  been 
our  father's  God,  Thou  wilt  also  be  our  God  and  our 
guide  even  unto  death.  Keep  us  we  beseech  Thee  in 
Thy  love  and  fear  all  the  days  of  our  life.  May  we 
earnestly  seek  to  know  and  humbly  strive  to  obey  Thy 
righteous  will.  May  we  allow  no  opportunity  to  do 
good  or  avert  evil  to  escape  us.  May  we  labor  to 
bring  our  thoughts,  our  words  and  actions  into  con- 
formity to  our  duty  as  made  known  to  us  by  reason  of 
Thy  Holy  Word.  May  we  search  into  the  natural 
and  moral  laws  of  our  being,  and  religiously  conform 
to  them.  May  we  strive  beyond  all  else  to  manifest 
the  same  mind,  nature  and  character  which  were  in 
Christ  Jesus.  Deliver  us  from  all  evil,  natural,  and 
moral  and  especially  from  the  fear  of  death.  Fill 
our  soul  with  love  for  Thee  and  all  men ;  and  finally, 
after  we  shall  through  Thy  strength  and  in  the  hope  of 
that  blessed  immortality  promised  in  Thy  Word,  have 
overcome  the  bitterness  of  death,  raise  us  to  that  im- 
mortality, through  Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord.     Amen. 

[Ending  with  the  Lord's  Prayer.] 

51S  Family  Archives;  also  manuscripts  in  Harvard  and  Yale  Libraries. 


APPENDIX  E 

The  Being  of  a  God''^ 

There  are,  who  will  not  see  in  earth,  or  sky, 

Nor  find  deep  in  the  chambers  of  their  heart 

The  Great  Invisible.     That  murky  mind 

I  envy  not,  that  readeth  thus  the  page 

Of  elder  scripture.     Nature's  eloquence 

Pours  in  my  ear  a  mystic  strain  from  heav'n. 

'Twas  when  the  southern  breeze  was  bland, 

Charg'd  with  the  fragrance  of  the  budding  spring, 

Night's  shadov^  veil  was  curtain'd  o'er  the  sky. 

Along  the  blue  at  intervals  repos'd, 

Festoon'd  and  motionless,  the  fleecy  clouds, 

Heav'n's  radiant  lamps,  hung  out  between. 

Lit  up  the  portals  of  the  throne  of  light. 

He,  who  can  ken  the  starry  sky,  nor  hear 

The  sphery  music  singing  of  a  God, 

Will  die  an  Atheist  in  hopeless  gloom. 

My  senses  caught  the  glorious  argument. 

My  bosom  with  the  high  conviction  warm'd. 

Beyond  that  blue ;  beyond  those  stars ;  beyond 

The  sky;  beyond  the  grave;  still  deeper  in 

The  eternal  space  He  dwells  in  light. 

Aye ;  and  this  mind,  so  anxiously  that  thrills 

'Twixt  hopes  and  fears,  the  tenant  soul  within, 

.-.19  ff^fstern  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol.  i,  528. 


THE  BEING  OF  A  GOD  303 

Imprison'd  in  this  crumbling  clay,  disturb'd, 

As  sleeping  waters,  with  a  pebble's  fall. 

Shall,  fearless,  soar  past  suns,  and  worlds  and  all 

The  unimagin'd  mysteries  beyond ; 

Until  it  scale  the  adamantine  walls 

That  guard  the  access  to  His  spotless  throne. 

There  shall  I  see  his  face  without  a  veil ; 

Not  darkly  through  a  glass  in  sin  and  tears ; 

But  changing  to  his  image,  as  I  view. 

-Timothy  Flint. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

I.     FLINT'S  WRITINGS 

[Arranged  in  chronological  order} 

Sermon  at  the  Ordination  of  Rev.  E.  Hubbard,  Newburyport,  1808. 

Covenant  of  Lunenburg  Church:  in  Cunningham's  J  History  of 
the  Town  of  Lunenburg. 

Letter  of  Resignation  to  the  Lunenburg  Church  (Lunenburg,  April 
7,  1814)  :  in  Cunningham's  A  History  of  the  Town  of  Lunen- 
burg. 

Letter  to  Rev.  Mr.  [Charles]  Lowell  (Lunenburg,  November, 
1814).     In  Ms.  Department  of  Boston  Public  Library. 

This  letter  is  in  reference  to  his  troubles  in  the  Lunenburg  pastorate, 
his  mission  in  New  Hampshire  and  his  plans  for  the  future. 

A  Sermon  delivered  in  Leominster  at  the  Commencement  of  the 
Year,  Lord's  Daj^  Jan.  ist,  181 5   (Leicester,  1815),  pamphlet. 

Oration  before  the  Washington  Benevolent  Society  of  Lancaster 
and  Sterling  and  of  Leominster  and  Fitchburg.  Delivered  at 
Leominster,  July  4,  181 5.  (Worcester,  printed  by  William 
Manning),  pamphlet. 

Report  to  the  Massachusetts  Society  for  promoting  Christian  Knowl- 
edge: in  the  Society's  Account  (Andover,  1815),  pamphlet,  pages 

53,  54. 

Annual  Narrative  of  Missions  (Hartford,  1816-1823). 

Several  extracts  from  Flint's  letters  and  reports  to  the  Missionary 
Society'  of  Connecticut. 

Letter  to  Rev.  Abel  Flint,  Secretary  of  the  Missionary  Societ}^  of 
Connecticut,  Lunenburg,  July  23,  1815. 

This  is  the  first  of  a  series  of  fourteen  letters  to  the  Missionary  So- 
ciety of  Connecticut,  most  of  which  are  in  the  nature  of  reports  of  his 
missionary  work  in  the  West.  All  are  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the 
Society,  Congregational  House,  Hartford. 

Idem,  Lunenburg,  Aug.  15,  181 5. 


3o6  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

Letter  to  Rev.  Abel  Flint,  Secretary  of  the  Missionary  Society  of 
Connecticut,  Cincinnati,  Dec.  5,  1815. 

Idem,  Cincinnati,  Jan.  18,  181 0. 

Idem,  Cincinnati,  Feb.  12,  iSlb. 

Idem,  Cincinnati,  March  20,  18 16. 

Idem,  St.  Louis,  July  2,  1816. 

Idem,  St.  Charles,  Oct.  10,  18 16, 

Idem,  St.  Charles,  April  15,  1817. 

Idem,  St.  Charles,  Aug.  3,  181 7. 

Idem,  St.  Charles,  Nov.  1,  181 7. 

Idem,  St.  Charles,  May  4,  1818. 

Idem,  St.  Charles,  June  4,  1818. 

Idem,  Marais  Creche  near  St.  Charles,  Jan.  15,  1822. 

Letter  to  Stephen  Hempstead,  Cincinnati,  Dec.  29,  18 15. 

Idem,  Cincinnati,  March  ii,  1816. 

Idem,  St.  Charles,  Nov.,  1816. 

Idem,  Jackson,  July  6,  1820. 

Preserved  in  Missouri  Historical  Society  collection,  St.  Louis.     Copy- 
in  Harvard  University'  Library. 
A  Collection  of  Hymns  from  European  Books.     Printed  for  Flint 
in  1815  or  1816. 

Mentioned  only  in  Flint's  missionary  reports. 
Arguments  Natural.  Moral  and  Religious,  for  the  Immortalitj'  of 
the  Soul. 

This  was  written  before  1802  and  published  or  printed  before  1826. 
Mentioned  by  W.  D.  Gallagher,  in  Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.  iii,  37.  I 
have  not  been  able  to  find  a  copy  of  this  pamphlet. 
Recollections  of  the  last  Ten  Years,  passed  in  occasional  Residences 
and  Journeyings  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  from  Pittsburg 
and  the  Missouri,  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  from  Florida  to  the 
Spanish  frontier ;  in  a  series  of  Letters  to  the  Rev.  James  Flint, 
of  Salem,  Massachusetts  (Boston,  1826). 

It  has  been  asserted  frequently,  and  even  by  Br.  James  Flint  that 
this  book  was  republished  in  London.  But  as  no  bibliography  that  I 
have  seen  mentions  such  an  edition  and  as  the  British  Museum  Catalogue 
has  only  the  Boston  edition,  I  am  inclined  to  think  it  very  doubtful 
whether  or  not  it  was  ever  published  in  England.  It  is  probably  confused 
with  the  London  edition  of  Francis  Berrian  which  has  been  overlooked 
by  the  bibliographers  and  by  the  friends  of  Flint. 

The  Harvard  Class  Book  for  the  Class  of  1800  says  that  it  was  partly 
republished  in  France.     There  is  no  trace,  however,  of  this  work  in  the 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  307 


A 


articles  upon  Flint  in  La  Grande  Encyclopedie  and  the  Biographic  Gen- 
erale.  They  mention  only  the  American  edition.  Allibone  in  his  Critical 
Dictionary  of  English  Literature,  mentions  an  edition  of  this  work.  Boston, 
1831.  His  authority  apparently  is  Rich's  Bihliotheca  Americana  Nova 
(London,  1846),  230.  Sabin  in  the  Bihliotheca  Americana,  vol.  vi,  479, 
thinks  this  is  a  mistake.  In  its  review  of  the  Recollections  in  the  October 
number,  1832,  vol.  xlviii,  201-222,  the  London  Quarterly  Review  in  giving 
the  title  page  of  the  book  says,  "Boston,  8vo,  1831." 

Francis  Berrian,  or  the  Mexican  Patriot  (Boston,  1826),  2  vols. 

The  British  Museum  Catalogue  mentions  another  edition  of  this 
work  (London,  1834),  3  vols.  There  was  also  a  second  American  edi- 
tion (Philadelphia,  1834),  2  vols.  The  London  edition  is  not  mentioned 
by  any  of  the  American  bibliographies  nor  by  Flint's  friends.  It  is 
possible  that  the  latter  have  confused  this  edition  of  Francis  Berrian 
with  the  Recollections  which  they  report  as  having  been  republished  in 
London. 

Extracts  from  the  Journal  of  a  Voyage  from  Alexandria,  Red  river, 
Louisiana,  to  New  York,  by  way  of  New  Orleans  and  the  gulf 
of  Mexico:  in  the  Western  Monthly  Review,  vol.  i,  313-322. 

A  condensed  Geography  and  History  of  the  Western  States,  or  the 
Mississippi  Valley  (Cincinnati,  1828),  2  vols. 

This  is  Mr.  Flint's  most  serious  contribution  to  literature.  It  was  a 
very  important  book  in  its  day  and  is  of  much  value  yet,  not  only  as 
indicative  of  Flint's  character  but  as  a  history  of  his  time. 

The  History  and  Geography  of  the  Mississippi  Valley.  To  which 
is  appended  a  Condensed  Physical  Geography  of  the  Atlantic 
United  States,  and  the  whole  American  Continent  (Cincinnati, 
1832),  2  vols. 

This  work  is  styled  a  "Second  Edition."  Not  only  is  its  title  different 
from  the  first  edition  but  there  are  many  changes  in  the  text.  Nearly 
all  of  the  material  in  the  two  volumes  of  the  first  edition  is  put  into  the 
first  volume  of  this  edition.  In  thp  second  A'olume  of  this  edition  there 
is  entirely  new  material  and  it  has  for  title.  The  United  States  and  the 
other  Divisions  of  the  American  Continent. 

Idem  (Cincinnati  and  Boston,  1833),  2  vols. 


'The  Western  Monthly  Review  (Cincinnati,  May,  1827,  to  June, 
1830),  3  vols.,  large  8vo,  pp.  668,  704,  756. 

About  three  fourths  of  this  publication  is  from  Mr.  Flint's  pen.     It 
is  very  valuable  for  biographical   and   also  for  historical   and  research 
purposes. 
The  Downfall  of  the  Fredonian  Republic  (Cincinnati,   1827)  :  in 
Western  Monthly  Review,  vol.  i,  69-71. 

See  also  Thwaites's  Early  Western  Travels,  vol.  xviii,  365-379. 


x) 


308  TLVIOTHY    FLINT 

Canals  (Cincinnati,  1827)  :  in  JVestern  Monthly  Revinv,  vol.  i, 
73-78. 

Jemima  O'Keefy.  -  A  Sentimental  Tale  (Cincinnati,  1827):  in 
fVestern  Monthly  Revieiv,  vol,  i,  384-393. 

Duelling  [j;V]  (Cincinnati,  1827):  in  JVestern  Monthly  Review, 
vol.  i,  453-4t)i. 

Violetta  and  Thoroughgrabb.  A  Tale :  in  Western  Monthly  Re- 
view, vol.  i,  442-453. 

This  story  is  presented  as  a  sample  of  a  storj'  which  the  author  hopes 
to  publish  soon  in  two  volumes,  boards.  It  is  difficult  to  decide  from  the 
playful  wa}-  in  which  the  stoiy  is  introduced  by  the  editorial  note,  whether 
or  not  it  is  Mr.  Flint's  own  work.  This  point  is  decided  however  by  the 
printing  of  the  same  story  in  the  Knickerbocker  a  few  years  later,  Sept. 
1835,  vol.  vi,  173-186.  In  the  latter  magazine  the  story  seems  to  be 
entirely  rewritten  and  much  of  the  frontier  slang  and  dialect  is  elimi- 
nated. 

Extracts  from  the  Diary  and  Correspondence  of  Mrs.  Risk. 

This  work  was  announced  in  Sept.,  1827.  In  Jan.,  1828,  Mr.  Flint 
announced  that  the  volume  was  ready  for  the  press  and  only  waited  a 
suitable  paper  for  publication.  Mr.  Flint  says  in  the  first  announce- 
ment that  from  "an  attentive  perusal  of  her  numerous  and  voluminous 
manuscript  writings,  the  editor  is  persuaded,  that  this  will  constitute  a 
work  of  no  common  interest  of  its  class."  No  later  mention  of  the  work 
is  made  in  the  Rei'ieiv.  See  Revic^u,  advertising  pages  for  Sept.,  1827, 
vol.  i,  and  also  page  565. 

Address  on  Intemperance,  Delivered  before  the  Cincinnati  Temper- 
ance Society  (Cincinnati,  1828)  :  in  Western  Monthly  Reviev, 
vol.  ii,  79  -  97. 

A  Tour  (Cincinnati,  1828)  :  in  Western  Monthly  Revieiu,  vol.  H, 
193-209,  249-263. 

Mr.  Flint  describes  this  tour  as  from  Cincinnati  via  Wheeling  and 
Washington  to  Salem,  returning  via  Erie  Canal  and  Buffalo. 

The  Life  and  Adventures  of  Arthur  Clenning  (Philadelphia,  1828) , 
2  vols. 

George  Mason,  the  Young  Backwoodsman  ;  or  "Don't  Give  up  the 
Ship."     A  story  of  the  Mississippi  (Boston,  1829). 

This  book  was  republished  (London,  1833)  under  the  title,  Don't 
Give  up  ike  Ship;  or,  the  Good  Son.     A  tale  by  T.  Flint. 

Inland  Trade  with  Mexico  (Cincinnati,  1829)  :  in  Western  Month- 
ly Review,  vol.  ii,  597-607,  649-659. 

See  also  Thwaites's  Early  JVestern  Travels,  vol.  xviii,  327-364.  This 
is  largely  a  review  of  Dr.  Willard's  travels  in  the  southwest. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  309 


Agnes  Sorel  de   Merivanne:  The  Recluse  Coquette   (Cincinnati, 
1829)  :  in  Western  Monthly  Review,  vol.  iii,  57-67. 
A  short  story  of  French  life  in  Louisiana. 

Oolemba  in  Cincinnati:  in  James  Hall's  Western  Souvenir  (Cin- 
cinnati, 1829),  68-101. 

This  is  a  short,  interesting  story  of  an  old  Indian's  visit  to  Cincinnati 
after  many  years  and  when  that  city  has  grown  to  be  a  large  and  thriving 
community. 

On  the  Progress  of  Political  and  Literary  Opinions  on  the  Continent 
of  Europe  (Cincinnati,  1829):  in  Western  Monthly  Revieiu, 
vol.  iii,  266-284. 

A  Tour  (Cincinnati,  Oct.,  1829)  :  in  Western  Monthly  Review, 
vol.  iii,  284-294. 

Like  most  of  his  journeys  this  is  in  the  form  of  a  letter  to  Dr.  James 
Flint.  It  describes  a  trip  to  New  England  via  Wheeling,  the  return  to 
Cincinnati  being  by  a  northern  stage  route  and  in  the  company  of  Rev. 
Mr.  Pierpont. 

Is  it  expedient  for  the  United  States  to  obtain  possession  of  Texas  ? 
(Cincinnati,  1830)  :  in  Western  Monthly  Revieiu,  vol.  iii,  359- 
368. 

American  Biographical  Dictionary.  See  Western  Monthly  Re- 
view, vol.  iii,  470-480. 

In  1830  Flint  was  planning  this  work  which  is  here  fully  outlined. 
It  was  to  be  based  on  the  Biographie  Universelle  Classtque,  on  the 
Bihliotheca  Classica,  of  Lempriere,  and  the  American  biographies.  It 
was  to  be  far  more  extensive  than  any  American  work  and  to  correct 
the  provincial  disproportions  of  Lempriere.  He  probably  did  not  go 
further  with  this  enterprise  than  to  complete  the  translation  of  the  French 
work. 

Dictionaire  Historique,  ou  Biographie  Universelle.  See  Western 
Monthly  Review,  vol.  iii,  470-480,  534-545,  582-587,  663-666. 

Mr.  Flint  was  interested  in  this  work  as  furnishing  part  of  the  found- 
ation for  his  American  Biographical  Dictionary.  We  have  extensive  por- 
tions of  his  translations  in  the  Revieiv.  In  June,  1830,  he  had  reached 
"D'jenguys."  His  interest  in  this  work,  the  three  or  four  years  of  working 
time  which  he  yet  had  in  the  north,  and  the  help  of  his  daughter  Emeline, 
makes  it  seem  quite  likely  that  he  finished  the  translation  of  this  work. 
There  is  now  no  trace  of  it  to  be  found,  unless  indeed  it  may  have  been 
worked  into  some  of  the  dictionaries  published  during  the  next  generation. 

Party  Spirit  (Cincinnati,  1830)  :  in  Western  Monthly  Review,  vol. 
iii,  517-525- 


310  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

A  characteristic  article  showing  Mr.  Flint's  views  of  sectarianism  in 
religion,  society,  and  race. 

Gambling.     A  Prize  Tract. 

A  copy  of  this  tract  has  not  been  found.  It  is  mentioned  only  in  the 
Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.  iii,  36,  37. 

The  Lost  Child  (Boston,  1830),  i8mo. 

The  North  American  Revie<w  [vol.  xxx,  564]  lists  this  as  a  novel. 
Mr.  Flint  published  as  the  leading  article  in  the  first  volume  of  the 
ff^'estern  Monthly  Review,  "The  Lost  Child."  This  appears  to  be  an  ac- 
count of  an  actual  occurrence  wherein  tlie  four  year  old  boy  of  a  Mr. 
Clark  in  Hempsted  County,  Arkansas,  was  stolen  from  his  home  about 
the  first  of  the  year,  1826.  Mr.  Flint's  "novel,"  if  such  it  be,  may  have 
been  an  expansion  of  this  story  or  suggested  by  it.  It  has  not  been  pos- 
sible for  the  writer  to  locate  a  copy  of  the  book. 

The  Shoshonee  Valley;  a  Romance  (Cincinnati,  1830),  2  vols. 

Several  chapters  of  this  book  are  found  in  the  Western  Monthly  Re- 
vieiv. 

The  Personal  Narrative  of  James  O.  Pattie,  of  Kentucky.  Edited 
by  Timothy  Flint  (Cincinnati,  1831). 

See  also  Pattie's  Personal  Narrative,  1825-1830:  in  Thwaites's  Early 
Western  Travels  (Cleveland,  1905),  vol.  xviii,  37-324. 

The  Art  of  Being  Happy:  From  the  French  of  Droz,  "Sur  L'Art 
D'Etre  Heureux;"  in  a  series  of  letters  from  a  Father  to  his 
Children:  with  Comments  and  Observ'^ations  (Boston,  1832). 

Indian  Wars  of  the  West  (Cincinnati,  1833). 

The  Blind  Grandfather:  in  the  Token  and  Atlantic  Souvenir  (Bos- 
ton, 1833)  ,  250-264;  also  in  the  Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.  ii,  57-59. 

The  Knickerbocker  (New  York),  vols,  i-vii. 

Mr.  Flint  was  announced  as  editor  of  the  magazine  in  Juh',  1833,  and 
he  remained  such  in  name  until  Feb.,  1834.  He  appears,  however,  to 
have  been  in  full  charge  of  only  the  Oct.,  1833,  number.  Several  stories 
and  journals,  together  with  other  articles  from  his  pen,  appear  in  the 
months  when  he  was  in  nominal  charge  of  the  magazine. 

Phrenology:  in  the  Knickerbocker  (New  York,  1 833),  vol.  ii,  103- 
IIO. 

Obstacles  to  American    Literature:   in   the  Knickerbocker    (New 

York,  1833),  vol.  ii,  161-170. 
Reminiscences  of  a   Recent  Journey  from    Cincinnati  to   Boston 

(Long  Island,  Sept.,  1833)  :  in  the  Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  242- 

263. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  311 


The  First  Steamboat  on  the  La  Plata;  or,  "The  Monogamist":  in 
the  Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  321-340,  433-450. 

The  Influence  of  Education  on  the  Formation  of  Character :  in  the 
Knickerbocker,  vol.  ii,  401-409. 

Biographical  Memoir  of  Daniel  Boone,  the  first  Settler  of  Kentucky 
(Cincinnati,  1833). 

Sabin  in  his  Dictionary  of  Books  relating  to  America  (New  York, 
1868-1893),  vol.  vi,  477,  gives  a  list  of  fourteen  different  editions  of  this 
work.  The  titles  vary  with  the  different  editions  which  are  all  published 
in  Cincinnati  and  from  1833  to  i868.  It  appears  that  only  the  first  four 
editions  were  controlled  by  Mr.  Flint  or  his  family. 

Lectures  upon  Natural  History,  Geology,  Chemistry,  the  Applica- 
tion of  Steam,  and  Interesting  Discoveries  in  the  Arts  (Boston, 

1833). 

The  Bachelor  Reclaimed  or  Celebacy  Vanquished,  from  the  French    O  \ 
(Philadelphia,  1834).  ' 

A  translation  or  paraphrase. 

The  Past,  the  Present  and  the  Future:  in  the  Knickerbocker,  vol. 
iv,  165-175. 

This  paper  appears  in  the  September,  1834,  Knickerbocker,  and  a  note 
informs  us  that  the  subject  matter  was  "condensed  from  an  elaborate 
lecture  delivered  before  the  Cincinnati  [Ohio]  Lyceum,  some  months 
since."  It  must  have  been  delivered  near  the  close  of  the  Cincinnati 
period.  It  takes  account  of  the  great  advances  in  material  comfort,  the 
means  of  travel,  and  the  new  intellectual  era  that  Mr.  Flint  feels  certain 
the  country  has  just  entered  upon.  Like  other  articles,  much  of  it  is 
devoted  to  an  optomistic  description  of  the  future.  This  is  done  by  imag- 
ining what  the  lecturer  before  the  Lyceum  on  the  anniversary  occasion 
will  say  fift)^  years  later. 

A  Splendid  Spectacle:  in  Knickerbocker  (Oct.,  1834),  vol.  iv,  295, 
296. 

A  description  of  a  great  fire  in  Alexandria,  La.,  on  the  thirtieth  of 
March,  1834. 

Macoupin:  or,  the  Talking  Potato:  in  Knickerbocker,  vol.  iv,  372-     — 

377. 

The  story  of  an  Algonquin  Indian  which  is  used  to  characterize  the 
dishonest  priest. 
Napoleon  Buonaparte:  in  Knickerbocker,  vol.  iv,  442-449. 

"This  paper  is  translated  from  a  recent  French  work,  of  much  celebri- 
ty." —  Knickerbocker,  vol.  iv,  442,  note. 


312  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

Sketches  of  the  Literature  of  the  United  States:  in  the  Athemviim 

(London,  1835). 

This  was  a  series  of  eleven  papeis.     Much  of  the  material  is  taken 

from  his  magazine  and  other  writings. 
Fragments  of  a  Letter  to  Rev.  Mr.   [Charles]  Lowell  [probably 

Alexandria,  1835],  in  Boston  Public  Library,  Ms.  Department. 
Sketches  of  Travel:  in  Knickerbocker  (March,  1835).  vol.  v,  242- 

245. 
Sketches  of   Travel.     Number   Two:    in   Knickerbocker    (April, 

1835),  vol.  V,  278-284. 
English  Caricatures:  in  Knickerbocker  (May,  1835),  vol.  v,  396- 

408. 
Martha:   or,   the  Grand   Cataract   of   Bogota:   in   Knickerbocker 

(July,  1835).  vol.  vi,  28-43. 
Hannah  Hervey:  in  Knickerbocker,  March,  1836,  vol.  vii,  251-261. 
Letter    (North  Reading,   1840)  :  in  Christian  Register,  vol.  xix, 

138-139. 
Recollections  of  the  West,  Second  Part. 

Doctor  Flint  says  in  his  Historical  Address  at  the  Bi-centcnnial  of 
Reading  [44-45],  "but  I  forbear  further  notice  of  his  merits  at  present,  as  a 
w  riter  and  a  man,  hoping,  as  I  do,  ere  long,  should  I  live,  to  give  to  the 
public  his  biography,  chiefly  from  his  published  and  private  letters  to  me, 
together  with  a  continuation  of  his  Recollections  of  the  West,  in  a  second 
part,  which,  at  his  decease,  he  left  with  me  in  manuscript."  This  second 
part  of  the  Recollections  is  said  by  some  of  the  present  generation  of  Mr. 
Flint's  family  and  friends  to  have  been  privately  printed  by  his  family 
soon  after  his  death.  The  most  careful  searching  in  eveiy  possible  place 
has  failed  to  give  any  clue  to  this  work.  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  it 
was  never  printed.  Doctor  Flint  does  not  say  that  he  had  prepared  the 
manuscript  for  his  biography  of  Timothy  Flint  at  this  time  but  he  had 
eleven  years  more  of  life  in  which  to  accomplish  his  proposed  task  of 
love  and  honor  for  his  friend.  Any  work  he  may  have  done  in  this 
direction  is  so  important  for  our  study,  as  also  the  manuscript  which  he 
said  had  been  left  with  him  for  the  second  part  of  the  Recollections,  that 
the  writer  has  spared  no  pains  in  an  endeavor  to  get  some  trace  of  the 
manuscript  or  manuscripts.  A  careful  search  among  the  descendants  of 
Doctor  Flint  in  Salem  and  other  places,  in  the  libraries  of  Boston,  Salem, 
Worcester  and  se\eral  places  in  other  parts  of  the  country-,  has  failed  to 
give  the  slightest  clue  to  any  manuscript  left  by  Doctor  Flint.  All  of  his 
writings  seem  to  have  been  destroyed.     His  will  directs  that  his  books 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  313 


shall  be  given  to  certain  members  of  his  family  and  that  his  sermons  shall 
be  burned.     No  mention  is  made  of  any  manuscript. "^^o 

Revised  copies  of  all  Flint's  principal  works  are  said  by  Dr.  James 
Flint,  in  the  article  in  the  Encyclopedia  Americana:  Supplementary  Vol- 
ume (Boston,  1858),  to  have  been  left  at  the  time  of  his  death.  Doctor 
Flint  was  in  hopes  that  they  would  be  published  in  a  uniform  edition. 
These  works  were  probably  left  with  his  family  in  Alexandria  and  very 
likely  burned  by  General  Banks's  army  during  the  Civil  War  when  the 
library  of  James  Timothy  Flint  was  destroyed. 
A  number  of  poems  are  found  in  several  of  Mr.  Flint's  works. 

Most  of  the  following  list  belong  very  clearly  to  Flint.     There  may 

be  some  doubt  as  to  the  authorship  of  one  or  two  of  them.     It  is 

so  difficult  to  determine  the  time  of  several  of  them  that  I  have 

grouped  them  all  alphabetically. 

Beech  Woods,  The:  in  Western  Monthly  Review,  vol.  i,  272,  273. 

Being  of  a  God,  The:  in  Western  Monthly  Review,  vol.  i,  528. 

Boone's    Remembrances   of   Arriving   in    Kentucky:    in    Western 
Monthly  Review,  vol.  i,  154. 

Farewell  to  the  Pine  Woods:  in  Recollections,  356,  357. 

Feast  of  Booths,  The:  in  Western  Monthly  Review,  vol.  i,  212-216. 

New  Year,  The:  in  Western  Monthly  Revieiu,  vol.  i,  529-530. 

On  Revisiting  the  Churchyard  of  my  Native  Place,  in  Western 
Monthly  Review,  vol.  ii,  210-211. 

Reflections  on  Crossing  the  Missouri:  in  Recollections,  289-291. 

Where  is  Joy:  in  the  Knickerbocker  (Oct.,  1834),  vol.  iv,  262,  263. 
This  poem  is  dated  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

II.     BIOGRAPHIES  OF  TIMOTHY  FLINT 

Most  of  the  encyclopedias  give  some  notice  of  the  life  and  writ- 
ings of  Mr.  Flint.     The  older  ones  are  naturally  more  full  than  the 
later.     Some  of  them  are  quite  inaccurate.     A  few  of  the  more 
accurate  and  extended  accounts  are  given. 
Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.  iii,  36,  37. 

In  this  number  of  the  Mirror  is  a  three  column  biographical  sketch 
of  Mr.  Flint  by  "W.D.G."  This  is  of  course  W.  D.  Gallagher,  who  at 
this  time,   Nov.   i6,   1833,   was  associated  with  Thomas  H.   Shreve   in 

^'"^  It  is  quite  possible  that  Doctor  Flint  never  got  as  far  as  preparing  the 
manuscript  for  this  biographj'.  It  is  said  of  him  by  one  of  his  associates  in 
the  Salem  pastorate  that  he  was  a  man  who  never  prepared  his  sermons 
vintil  Saturday  night. 


314  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

editing  tlie  Mirror.      Tliis  i^'  one  of  the  most  valuable  biographical  arti- 
cles we  have. 
Encyclopedia    Americana:    Supplementarj-    Volume     (Boston, 
1 8 s8 ).■"•-»  vol.  xiv. 

riie  article  in  this  work  is  extended  and  very  important.  It  is  said 
by  the  writer  of  the  Harvard  Class  Book  for  the  Class  of  iSoo,  to  have 
been  written  by  Dr.  James  Flint.  Other  evidences  stronn;!}-  favor  this 
statement.  This  article  is,  says  the  Class  Book,  also  in  the  Conversation 
Lexicon,  second  edition. 

Encyclopedia  Britannica  (New  York,  1870),  25  vols. 
This  has  perhaps  the  best  encyclopedic  article  on  Flint. 

Harv.'VRd  Class  Book  for  the  Class  of  1800.  A  Ms.  in  Harvard 
University'  Librarj-.  Two  articles  on  Flint,  pp.  20-23,  "o  author 
mentioned;  pp.  124-129,  by  his  classmate  [Samuel]  Swett. 

International  Cyclopedia  (New  York,  1887),  15  vols. 

N.ational  Cyclopedia  of  American  Biography  (New  York, 
1896),  vol.  vi,  359. 

New  American  Encyclopedia  (New  York,  1870),  16  vols. 
Has  a  fair  article  on  Flint. 

"S"  [Samuel  Swett].  Obituan,"  and  Appreciation:  in  Christian 
Register  (Boston),  vol.  xix,  138,  139. 

This  is  a  valuable  sketch  of  Flint's  life  and  especially  of  the  last  da3's. 

Venable,  William  H.  Beginnings  of  Literary  Culture  in  the 
Ohio  Valley  (Cincinnati,  1891),  323-360. 

This  lecture  on  Flint  is  by  far  the  most  complete  and  valuable  piece 
of  work  that  has  been  done  on  the  subject  in  recent  years.  Tliere  are 
several  errors  in  dates  and  in  other  minor  matters.  He  is  very  much 
limited  for  materials  and  for  space  but  he  has  given  us  a  very  readable, 
comprehensive,  and  sympathetic  piece  of  work.  Indeed  the  writer  is 
free  to  confess  that  it  was  Doctor  Venable's  lecture  on  Flint  that  first 
gave  him  an  interest  and  led  him  to  a  fuller  study  of  his  life. 

in.     FLINTIANA 

Allibone,  Samuel  Austin.  A  Critical  Dictionary  of  English 
Literature,  and  British  and  American  Authors,  living  and  de- 
ceased, from  the  earliest  accounts  to  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth 
century  (Philadelphia,  1871-1892),  5  vols.,  vol.  i,  607. 

American  Almanac  and  Repository  of  Useful  Knowledge 
(Boston,  1841),  p.  287. 

521  TTiis   article  appears  in  the  same   form  in   this  volume  under  other 
dates:     Philadelphia,  1847,  and  again   184S,  same  cit>-. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  315 


American  Monthly  Magazine  (Boston,  1829),  vol,  i. 

This  magazine  was  edited  in  Mr.  Flint's  time  by  N.  P.  Willis,  an 
admirer  of  Mr.  Flint.     It  has  several  appreciative  reviews  and  notices. 

American  Monthly  Review  (Boston,  1833),  vols,  iii  and  iv. 

Beers,  Henry  A.  Nathaniel  Parker  Willis  (American  Men  of 
Letters  Series),  (Boston,  1885). 

Bryan,  Wm,  S.  and  Robert  Rose.  A  History  of  the  Pioneer 
Families  of  Missouri  (St.  Louis,  1876). 

Cincinnati  First  Congregational  Church  [Unitarian]  Rec- 
ords. 

Reported  in  letter  of  Geo.  A.  Thayer  (Cincinnati,  Jan.  24,  1908),  in 
Unitarian  Library,  Boston. 

Cincinnati  Mirror  (1832-1835),  3  vols. 

Several  references  to  Flint,  and  an  important  article  on  his  writings. 
Edited  by  Wm.  D.  Gallagher. 

Cooke,  Harriet  R.  The  Flint  Family:  in  The  Driver  Family 
(New  York,  1889),  291-307. 

Cunningham,  George  A.     A  History  of  the  Town  of  Lunen- 
burg in  Massachusetts,  From  its  Original  Grant,  Dec.  7,  17 19. 
A  manuscript  in  Lunenburg  Town  Library. 

DuYCKiNCK,  Evert  A.  Cyclopedia  of  American  Literature  (New 
York,  1856),  2  vols. 

Eaton,  Lilley.  Genealogical  History  of  the  Town  of  Reading, 
Mass.  (Boston,  1874). 

Essex  Register  [Salem],  Aug.  24,  1840. 

Flint,  James.  Verses  on  Many  Occasions  with  Others  for  which 
it  may  be  thought  there  was  no  Occasion  (Lynn,  1851). 

Flint,  Rev.  Timothy:  in  Encyclopedia  Americana:  Supplemen- 
tary Volume  (Boston,  1858). 

Historical  Address  delivered  at  the  Bi-centennial  Celebration 


of  the  Incorporation  of  the  Old  Town  of  Reading,  May  29,  1844 
(Boston,  1844). 

Flint,  James  Timothy.     Letters  to  Parents  and  Relatives  (Cam- 
bridge, Mass.,  1838-1841). 

These  letters  are  ver\-  important  for  the  last  years  of  Mr.  Flint's  life. 
The  son  was  in  the  Harvard  Law  school  and  wrote  frequentl}'.  Several 
of  his  letters  are  preserved  by  the  family  in  Alexandria,  La.,  and  are 
now  in  care  of  Mrs.  Emeline  Flint  Seip. 

Flint  Jr.,  James  Timothy.     Several  Letters  to  the  Writer  in 


3i6  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

reference  to  his  Grandfather's  books  and  life.  In  Harvard  Li- 
brary. 

Flint,  Mic.vn  Peabodv.  The  Hunter  and  Other  Poems  (Boston, 
1826). 

Lines  on  Passing  the  Grave  of  My  Sister:  in  Western  Month- 
ly Revieiv,  vol.  i,  651-653. 

Letters  concerning  a  Journey  from  Nashville  to  Alexandria, 


Aug.  and  Sept.,  1833:  in  Knickerbocker,  vol.  iii,  112-119, 

Ford,  Henry  A.  and  Kate  B.  History  of  Cincinnati,  Ohio  (Cin- 
cinnati, 1881). 

GiDDiNGS,  Salmon.  Letters  to  the  Missionary  Society  of  Con- 
necticut (St.  Louis,  1 8 18),  Archives  of  the  Societ>%  Congrega- 
tional House,  Hartford. 

Griswold,  Rufus  W.  Prose  Writers  of  America  (Philadel- 
phia, 1847). 

HoucK,  Louis.  A  History  of  Missouri  from  the  Earliest  Explor- 
ations and  Settlements  until  the  Admission  of  the  State  into  the 
Union  (Chicago,  1908),  3  vols. 

Knickerbocker  (New  York,  1833,  1834),  vols,  i,  ii,  iii. 

Has  a  number  of  articles  by  Flint  and  several  about  him.  Important 
source. 

Literary  Gazette  (Boston,  1826). 

Lunenburg,  Mass.,  copy  of  the  Recollections.     Mss.  notes  in. 

Parish  and  Town  Records. 

See  letters  of  J.  A.  Litchfield  to  the  writer  in  Boston  Public  Libraiy. 

Massachusetts  Historical  Society.  Proceedings  (Boston),  vol. 
i,  416,  418;  vol.  X,  52,  first  series. 

Massachusetts  Society  for  promoting  Christian  Knowl- 
edge.  Account  (Andover,  1815). 

Missouri  Historical  Society.  Collection  (St.  Louis),  Let- 
ter of  Abel  Flint  to  Stephen  Hempstead,  Hartford,  April  30, 
1818. 

Letter  refers  to  unfavorable  reports  made  to  the  Missionary  Society- 
of  Connecticut  about  Timothy  Flint. 

New  York  Commercial. 

Quoted  in  Cincinnati  Mirror,  vol.  iii,  444,  as  containing  a  review  of 
the  Baclielor  Reclaimed  or  Celibacy  Vanquished  and  an  estimate  of 
Flint's  writings.     The  Commercial  article  is  quoted  to  the  extent  of  four 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  317 


or  five  hundred  words  and  is  valued  as  showing  Mr.  Flint's  high  standing 

in  the  literaiy  world. 
Norton,  Augustus  T.     History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 

Illinois  (St.  Louis,  1879). 
North  American  Review   (Boston,  1826,  1830,  1836,  1846), 

vols,  xxiii,  XXX,  xliii,  Ixii. 
North    Reading.     Semi-centennial    Souvenir    (North    Reading, 

1903). 

Has  a  history  of  the  North  or  Second  Church  of  Reading   (North 

Reading  Church)  and  other  valuable  material. 

Union  Congregation  Church  Manual  (Andover  Press,  1903). 

Parish  Records. 

Pandect,  The  (Cincinnati,  1827,  1828). 

A  Calvinlstic  paper  published  by  Dr.  Joshua  L.  Wilson  and  other 

orthodox  ministers  of  the  city.     Several  times  attacked  Flint.     See  Rei^eiv, 

ii,  460-462. 
Quarterly  Review  (London,  1832),  vol.  xlviii,  201-222. 
Phillips  Academy.     Biographical  Catalogue   (Andover,  1903), 

p.  40. 
Richards,  Thomas  C.     Samuel  J.  Mills,  Missionary,  Pathfind- 
er, Pioneer  and  Promoter  (Boston,  1906). 
Sabin,  Joseph.     A  Dictionary  of  Books  relating  to  America,  from 

its  discover}'  to  the  present  time  (New  York,  1868-1892),  19 

vols. 
Salem.     Records  of  the  First  Church.     Essex  Institute. 

Records  of  North  Church.     Essex  Institute. 

Salem  Gazette,  Aug.  21,  1840. 

Seip,   Emeline  Flint.     Several   Letters,   Poems  and  Copies  of 

Family   Records    (Alexandria,    La.,    1907-1910).     In    Boston 

Public  Library. 
Seip,   Fredric.     Several  Letters  relating  to  Mr.   Flint's  life  in 

Alexandria  and  to  that  of  his  family  (Alexandria,  La.,  1908- 

1910).     In  Library  of  Harvard  University. 
Southern  Review  (Charlestown,  1828),  vol.  ii,  192-216. 
Stedman,  Edmond  C.  and  Ellen  M.  Hutchinson.     Library  of 

American  Literature  (New  York,  1887-1890). 
Thomas,  Emeline  Flint.     Letters  to  her  brother,  James  Tim- 
othy Flint  at  Harvard   (Alexandria,  1838-1841),  belonging  to 


3i8  TIMOTHY    FLINT 

the  Family  in  Alexandria,  La.     In  care  of  Mrs.  Emeline  Flint 
Seip. 

Trolloph,  Frances.  Domestic  Manners  of  the  Americans  (Lon- 
don, 1832),  2  vols.     Republished   (New  York,  1901). 

TucKERMAN,  Henry  T.  America  and  her  Commentators.  With 
a  Critical  Sketch  of  Travel  in  the  United  States  (New  York, 
1864),  401-404. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  careful,  fair,  and  valuable  criticisms  of  Mr. 
Flint  and  his  work. 


INDEX 


Adayes:  170 

Alabama:  118 

Albany   (N.Y.)  :  208 

Albion    (111.):  260 

Alexandria  (La.):  mentioned,  15, 
211,  222,  237,  277;  moves  to,  157; 
first  letter  in  Recollections  dated 
from,  177;  described,  163-164;  re- 
sides, 163-183  ;  home  life,  167-168  ; 
returns  to,  178,  217,  229;  journey 
from,  180;  incident,  182-183;  fire, 
3i8;  homestead,  233 

Alleghany  Mts:  mentioned,  17,  53, 
57i  i53j  footnote 

Alps:  222 

American  Antiquarian  Society  of 
Worcester:  15-16 

American  Biographical  Dictionary: 
works  on,   256 

American  Monthly  Review:  men- 
tioned, 212;  review,  260;  extract 
from,  261,  262,  263;  cited,  315 

Andover:  mentioned,  218,  287 

Angel's  Rest:  summer  home,  234 

Apennines:  222 

Arkansas:  mentioned,  84,  119,  297; 
resides,  121-127;  people,  123-124; 
hardships,  125-127 

Arkansas  Post:  121,  123 

Arkansas  River:  mentioned,  119, 
120,  151,  163;  marks  border  of 
new  climate,  121 ;  scenery  along, 
121-123 

Army,  union:  15 

Arthur  Clenning:  Flint's  experiences 
portrayed,  44 ;  mentioned,  49 ;  pub- 


lished, i88;  extract,  250;  criticism, 
253  ;  cited,  308 

Art  of  Being  Happy:  extract,  27, 
286;  mentioned,  275,  and  footnote, 
285 ;  cited,  310 

Athenaum :  prepares  articles,  223 ; 
sketches  prepared  for,  230,  231; 
mentioned,  231;  cited  as  authority, 
231;  articles,  250-251;  criticism  ot 
articles,  253;  article  by  N.  P.  Wil- 
lis, 257 

Atlantic  Ocean:  mentioned,  164,  i8i 

Attala:  58 

Azeila   (ship)  :  180-181 

Babcock,  Rufus:  book    cited,    98, 

footnote 

Ballinger,  Madam  — :    140 

Baltimore  (Md.):  mentioned,    173, 

175.   199 

Banks,  Gen.  — :  233 

Baptists:  i8,  96,  190,  282,  293 

Barnard,  Rev.  Dr.  — :  36 

Baton  Rouge   (La.):  154,  155 

Baxter,  Mr.  — :  279,  280 

Beaver   (on  the  Ohio  River)  :  62 

Beebe  [Beebee],  Mr.  — :  115,  291 

Beecher,  L3man:  18,  193 

Beers,  Prof.  Henry  A:  mentioned, 
230;  extract  from  letter,  250;  criti- 
cises articles  in  Athenaum,  253 ; 
criticises  Arthur  Clenning,  253 ; 
cited,  315 

Belial:  children  of,  212 

Bellefountaine  (Mo.)  :  119 

Bently,  Dr.  — :  26 


320 


TIMOTHY    FLINT 


Berrian,  Francis:  character  in  luMik, 
29;  at  Harvard,  32-33;  mentioned, 
279 ;   see  also,  Francis  Berrian 

Bethany   (W.  Va.):  190 

Bibles:  lack,  78;  distributed,  95,  109; 
scarcity',  102 

Bigelow,  E.  V:  work  cited,  34 

Biographic  Universclle  Classi(jiie: 
232,   238,   256 

Birkbeck,  Mr.  — :  260 

Blackburn,  Rev.  Dr.  Gideon:  men- 
tioned, 91,  and  footnote,  92,  98; 
unites  forces  with,  93,  94;  elo- 
quent, 107-108 

Blythe,  Dr.  — :  77 

Boats:  Kentucky  flatboat,  61-62,  63; 
skiff,  62;  keel,  62,  119;  purchases 
for  journey,  83;  steamboat,  83; 
crew  on,  85  ;  method  of  propelling, 
89;  journey  up  Miss.  Riv.,  127- 
132;  builds  flatboat,  151;  embarks 
on  steamer,  155,  163  ;  berths,  207- 
208;  good,  220;  experience  on, 
225-227 

Bogues:  nickname  applied  to  natives, 

Bonhome:   no 

Boon's  Lick:  103 

Boston  (Mass.)  :  Congregational 
Library,  16;  mentioned,  161,  175, 
218,  259;  class  reunion,  209-210; 
compared  with  European  cities, 
222 ;  stops  at  Tremont  House,  227 ; 
beauty  of  Mt.  Auburn,  243,  244, 
footnote 

Boston  Public  Library-:  16;  original 
letter  in,  232 

Brook  Farm:   190 

Brown,  Chas.  Brockden:  249 

Bryant,  Wm.  Cullen:  257 

Buffalo   (N.Y.) :  198,  228 

Bullard,  Frances:  marries  Micah 
Flint,  233 

Bullard,  Judge  Henry:  36,  165,  166 

Bullard,  Rev.  John  (father  of  pre- 
ceding) :   36,   165 


Byron,  Lord:  286 

Cahokia  Prairie:  106 

Cairn    (111.):  86 

Calvinism:    192,   279 

Calvinists:    18,    193 

Cambridge   (Mass.)  :  238 

Campbell,    Alexander:    18;    debates 

with  Robert  Owen,  190-193 
Canada:  88;   visits,  219-222 
Cantonment  Jessup  (U.S.  Post)  :  170 
Caracas,   Venezuela:  earthquake   at, 

134 

Cartwright,  Peter:  17 

Catholics,  Roman:  mentioned,  90-91, 
93i  97»  98?  132;  churches  in  La., 
154,  165;  cemetery,  160;  doomed 
man  refuses  to  see  priest,  170 ;  ser- 
vice by  priests,  181;  pope,  279; 
agrees  with,   279 

Cemeterj^:  Catholic,  160;  Protestant, 
160-161 ;  private,  237 ;  Flint  buried 
in  Harmony  Grove,  243 ;  beauty 
of  Mt.  Auburn,  243,  244;  monu- 
ment in   (illus.),  245 

Channing,  William  EUery:  i8 

Chateaubriand,    M.   — :   45,   286 

Cheneyville    (La.) :   237 

China:   273 

"Christians":  190;  compared  with 
Unitarians,   192 

Christian  Register,  The:  quotation, 
235;  article,  239,  242;  letter  from, 
241 

Church:  called  to  Lunenburg,  35; 
trouble,  43-45 ;  resigns,  43 ;  hopes 
to  found  Presbyterian,  80;  organ- 
ized in  St.  Charles,  98,  117;  dis- 
courages founding,  109;  lack  of 
Protestant  in  La.,  154;  Catholic, 
154,  165  ;  in  New  Orleans,  158  ;  de- 
bate in  Methodist,  191 ;  Presbvte- 
rian,  refused  for  debate,  191 ;  Flint, 
one  of  the  leaders  to  form  first 
Congregational,  195 ;  Trinitarian, 


INDEX 


321 


209 ;  Flint's  attitude  and  sympathy 
toward  various  denominations,  279 

Cincinnati  (Ohio)  :  mentioned,  63, 
77.  95,  loi,  150,  179,  211,  234,  236, 
269,  291;  spent  winter  in,  64; 
settle  for  winter,  65;  described,  65- 
66;  friends,  83;  date  of  leaving, 
84;  revisits,  174;  plans  removal, 
180;  literary  work,  185,  189;  lo- 
cates, 185-217;  debate,  190-191; 
honored,  2cx3-20i ;  Mrs.  Trollope, 
212-213 ;   moves  from,  217 

Cincinnati  Mirror:  mentioned,  41, 
258 ;  cited  as  authority,  41,  234, 
254,  255,  258,  268;   cited,  313 

Cities:  eastern  compared  with  wes- 
tern, 204 

Civil  War:  15,  233,  277 

Clark,  C.  A:  241 

Clark,  Wm:  33 

Clarke  Company,  Robert:  thanked,  16 

Clay,  Henry:  77 

Cohasset:  34 

Collins,  Judge  — :  195,  footnote 

Columbia  River:  273 

Columbus  (war-ship)  :  206 

Congregationalists:  18,  153,  footnote; 
relations  with  Presbyterians,  67, 
footnote,   90,   footnote,   96 

Connecticut,  Missionary  Society  of: 
Flint's  connection  with,  54;  let- 
ters, 69,  84,  115,  141-142,  145,  146, 
185,  291-296;  salary,  78-79;  men- 
tioned, 91,  footnote,  112,  footnote, 
146 

Cooke,  Harriet  R:  author  of  Driver 
Family,  zz,  footnote;  work  cited, 

315 
Cordelle:  used  to  propel  boat,  89,  128 
Corwine,  R.  M:  195,  footnote 
Covenant:  used  by  Flint  in  Lunen- 
burg, 42 
Covington   (La.)  :  155,  156 
Creoles:  219 
Cuba:  227 


Cuivre    (Mo.) :  109 

Cunningham,   George  A:  work,   35, 

footnote,  41,  46;  cited,  315 
Cutler,  Ephraim:  25,  footnote 
Cutler,  Julia  P:  writer,  25,  footnote 
Cutler,  Rev.  Dr.  Manasseh:  26 
Cypress  tree:  122-123 

Damon,  Rev.  David:  43 

Daniel  Boone:  related  to  other 
works,  252 ;  most  popular  work, 
271-272,  and  271,  footnote;  cited, 

3" 

Dartmouth  College:  28,  29 
Dayton    (Ohio) :  72 
Dead   Man's  Riffle:  61 
Delaware  River:  56;  compared  with 

Mississippi,  154 
Disciples:   190 

Doddridge,  Mr.  — :  279,  280 
Donnell,  Mr.  — :  94 
Drake,  Dr.  — :  174,  and  footnote 

Earthquakes:  in  Mo.,  133;  plan 
to  save  from,  134 

Easton:  56 

Economic  Conditions:  abundant  food, 
65 ;  cost  of  living,  65-66,  93 ;  in 
Ky.,  75-76;    in  St.  Charles,  108 

Edinburgh  Reviezv:  poem,  236 

Edwards,  Jonathan:  287 

Egypt:  240 

Emmons,  Nathaniel :  287 

Encyclopedia  Americana,  Supp.  Vol: 
as  authority,  34;  article  cited  in, 
177;    quotation   from,   229;   cited, 

314 
Encyclopedia     Britannica:     extract, 

253;   cited,   314 
Episcopal   Church:  279,  281 
Erie  Canal:  198 
Essex  County:  25,  49 
Essex  Institute  (Salem)  :  15 
Europe:   mentioned,   65,   191;    visits 

(?),  222 


322 


TIMOTHY    FLINT 


Everett,  David:  28 
Ewing,  Finis:  18 

Factories:  204 

Federal  Party:  51 

Female  Charitable  Association:  of 
Cincinnati,  83 

First  S.S.  on  the  La  Plata:  gathers 
material  for,  200 

Fishkill    (N.Y.):   56 

Fitchbiirg  (Mass.)  :  mentioned,  34, 
51,  165 

Flint,  Rev.  Abel :  extract  from  let- 
ter to,  54;  mentioned,  91,  footnote, 
112,  footnote,  113;  letter  to,  146, 
291-296 

Flint,  Ebenezer  Hubbard  (son  of 
Timothy  Flint):  birth,  40;  book- 
store in  Cincinnati,  185,  footnote', 
business,  186;  manages  Micah's 
estate,  233 ;  characteristics,  276, 
277 

Flint,  Mrs.  E.  H :  wife  of  preced- 
ing,  277 

Flint,  Emeline  Hubbard  (daughter 
of  Timothy  Flint)  :  mentioned,  40, 
'37i  195;  falls  in  river,  85;  mar- 
ries Gen.  Thomas,  232 ;  describes 
brother's  death,  237-238 ;  death 
of,  277 

Flint,  Hezekiah  (uncle  of  Timoth}')  : 
goes  west,  25,  and  footnote 

Flint  Jr.,  Hezekiah  (son  of  preced- 
ing) :  in  Cincinnati,  25,   footnote, 

64 

Flint,  Rev.  Jacob:  34,  36 

Flint,  Dr.  James  (cousin  of  Tim- 
othy):  mentioned,  28,  34,  150,  182, 
199,  223,  227,  footnote,  252;  quo- 
tation from  Historical  Address, 
etc.,  29;  at  Harvard,  31;  Recollec- 
tions dedicated  to,  45 ;  Timothy 
visits,  171,  175;  connection  with 
the  Recollections,  177;  informa- 
tion from,  178,  179;  gives  date  of 


move  to  Cincinnati,  185,  footnote; 
letters  to,  196,  199,  206;  goes  to 
North  Reading  with,  208 ;  cited 
as  authorit}-,  229;  visits  Timothy, 
235;  verses  by,  235-236;  article, 
242;  buried  beside  Timothy,  244; 
writings,  315 

Flint  Jr.,  James  (son  of  Micah  P. 
Flint)  :  death,  237 

Flint,  James  Timothy  (youngest  son 
of  Timothy) :  birth,  141 ;  parting, 
173;  at  Harvard,  232,  238;  visits, 
238  ;  return  home,  238  ;  in  Natchez, 
239-241 ;  buys  cemetery  lot,  243 ; 
occupation,  276-277 ;  children,  277 ; 
Spiritualist,  280;  library  destroy- 
ed, 15 

Flint,  James  Timothy  (grandson  of 
Timothy  Flint):  gives  aid,  15; 
mentioned,  277 

Flint,  Martha  Elizabeth  (youngest 
child):  teaches  French  to,  234; 
gift,  238;  mentioned,  277;  death, 
277;   daughter  living,  277 

Flint,  Martha  Kimball  (mother  of 
Timothy)  :  21 

Flint,  Micah  Peabody  (oldest  son 
of  Timothy):  date  of  birth,  40; 
mentioned,  83,  106,  235 ;  very  ill, 
125 ;  poem  in  memory  of  sister, 
130,  297-300;  lines  by,  168,  176; 
occupation,  179 ;  criticism  of  work, 
186;  poems  published  in  Revieiv, 
i88;  marries  Frances  BuUard, 
233;  prosperous,  233;  estate,  233; 
death,  236;  published  poems,  236; 
father  uses  poetry,  252;  sons,  277; 
works  cited,  316 

Flint  Jr.,  Micah  (son  of  Micah  P.) : 
death,  237 

Flint,  Peter:  241 

Flint,  Thomas:  21-22 

Flint,  Timothy:  great-uncle,  22 

Flint,  Timothy:  birth  and  baptism, 
21 ;    genealogy,    21-22 ;    boyhood. 


INDEX 


323 


25-^8;  youth,  28-34;  education, 
29-34;  ministry  in  Lunenburg,  35- 
46 ;  resigns  from  pastorate,  43-46 ; 
eloquence  of,  51-53;  journey  west, 
55-64;  83-85;  in  Ohio,  65-81;  or- 
ganizes churches,  72 ;  journey 
through  Ind.  and  Ky.,  75  ;  on  Miss. 
Riv.,  85-92;  stay  in  St.  Louis,  91- 
97;  in  and  around  St.  Charles, 
101-118;  Sunday  observances,  112; 
troubles  in  ministry,  112-115;  sick- 
ness, 117;  prophecy,  122,  272-274; 
in  Arkansas,  121-127;  hardships, 
125-130,  142-146,  295 ;  in  New  Ma- 
drid, 131-135;  in  Jackson,  135- 
141 ;  return  to  St.  Charles,  142- 
150;  asks  for  aid,  145-146;  jour- 
ney south,  150-154;  in  New  Or- 
leans and  vicinity,  154-161 ;  in 
Alexandria,  164-182;  head  of  col- 
lege, 164,  169;  ill  health,  169-178; 
goes  north,  171-178,  179-182;  in 
Cincinnati,  185-201 ;  objects  in  es- 
tablishing JVestern  Monthly  Re- 
'vieiv,  186-188  ;  literary  career,  178- 
207 ;  attitude  toward  ministerial 
duties,  193-194;  goes  to  New  Eng- 
land, 195-200;  goes  south,  200; 
journeys,  207-210;  takes  charge  of 
Knickerbocker,  207,  210-211;  re- 
signs, 215;  returns  to  Alexandria, 
217;  travels,  218-228;  in  Canada, 
219-222 ;  in  Europe  (  ? ) ,  222 ;  in  S. 
Amer.  (?),  222,  223-224;  in  Cu- 
ba, 224-228  ;  writes  for  Atheneeum, 
230-231;  prosperity,  233-234;  last 
years,  233-242;  death,  242,  and 
footnote;  rank  as  writer,  242-243; 
monument  and  inscription,  244- 
247 ;  criticism  of  work,  249-266 ; 
interest  in  French  literature,  255- 
256;  type,  17;  characteristics,  18- 
19,  267-287;  dislike  of  liquor  and 
tobacco,  275  ;  attitude  toward  slav- 
ery,   276;    famil}',    276-278;    reli- 


gious, 18,  194,  195,  275,  footnote, 
278-287;  itinerary',  289-290;  letter 
of  resignation,  291-296;  family 
prayer,  301 ;  books  and  papers  de- 
stroyed, 15;  list  of  writings,  305- 
313;  biographies  of  Flint,  313-314 

Flint,  Mrs.  Timothy  (wife  of  pre- 
ceding):  marries,  34;  mentioned, 
62,  72,  195,  292;  keeps  school,  io8, 
109,  294;  very  ill,  125,  145;  anx- 
ious to  leave  Ark.,  127;  in  travail, 
128-130;  death,  227,  footnote,  243, 
and  footnote;  see  also  Hubbard, 
Abigail 

Flint,  Wm:  father  of  Timothy,  21 

Flint,  Wm:  grandfather,  21 

Flint,  Wm:  great-grandfather,  21 

Flint,  Wm:  great-great-grandfather, 
22 

Flint  family  treasures:  destroyed,  15 

Flint  homestead:  21;  illustration,  23 

Flint  Street:  22 

Florida:  interested  in  history,  156 

Flour  Island:  119 

Flowers,   Mr.  — :  260 

Ford,  Mr.  — :  History  of  Cincinnati, 
cited,  195,  footnote 

Fortier,  Alice:  work  cited,  377 

Francis  Berrian,  or  the  Mexican  Pa- 
triot: mentioned,  28,  271;  quota- 
tion, 30-31,  32,  33;  material,  165, 
i66;  when  written,  178;  personal 
references,  178-179;  published, 
179;  well  received,  186;  criticism 
by  W.  H.  Venable,  254;  by  N.  P. 
Willis,  257 ;  by  Mrs.  Trollope,  258- 
259 ;  extract  from,  281-282  ;  cited, 

307 

Frankfort   (Ky.)  :  80 

French:  of  Arkansas,  125;  compared 
with  Germans,  138;  in  New  Or- 
leans, 159;  interest  in  French 
Avork    and    translations,    255-256. 

Gallagher,  W.   D  :   mentioned,  41, 


324 


TIMOTHY    FLINT 


and  footnote,  267,  footnote  \  state- 
ment, 234;  value  as  critic,  254; 
criticises  Flint's  works,  254-255; 
criticism,  258,  267;  dedicates  book 
to  Flint,  268 

Galveston  (Tex.)  :  mentioned,  237, 
277 

Galveston  flood:  15 

Geography  and  History  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi Falley :  quotation,  26 ;  cit- 
ed, io6,  307 ;  gathers  material  for, 
155;  mentioned,  179,  and  footnote; 
publication,  i8o,  188;  Niagara 
Fails  described  in,  198  ;  popularity', 
234;  criticism,  243;  related  to  oth- 
er works,  252 ;  criticism  by  Mr. 
Gallagher,  255  ;  by  Griswold,  257  ; 
by  Mrs.  Trollope,  259 ;  review  in 
Amer.  Monthly  Review,  260. 

George  Mason:  Flint's  own  experi- 
ences portrayed,  44,  137;  quota- 
tion, 44,  149 ;  Mo probable  scene 

of  story,  136;  works  on,  149,  150; 
published,  188;  moral  purpose, 
250;  cited,  308 

German  settlement  in  Missouri:  137- 
141 ;  people  compared  with  French, 
138;  trouble  with  pastor,  139-140; 
funeral   customs,   140,   footnote 

Germans:  minister  and  family,  59- 
60;  of  Pennsylvania,  205;  of 
Missouri,  138 

Ghent  (Ky.) :  77 

Giddings,  Rev.  Salmon:  mentioned, 
80,  91,  92,  94,  98,  99,  101,  107, 
108,  109,  295  ;  writes  letters  against 
Flint,  112-114;  brief  account,  113, 
footnote;  Flint's  relations  with, 
115  ;  letter,  117  ;  trials  of,  292,  293  ; 
attitude  of  Flint  toward,  294 

Goldsmith,   Oliver:   258 

Golgotha:  65 

Gray,  Mrs.  — :  132,  134 

Grecian,  S.S:  174 


Griswold,  Rufus  W:  extract  by,  251 ; 

criticism  by,  257 
Gulf  of  Mexico:  mentioned,  88,  180 

Hali,  Capt.  — :  221 

Hall,  Judge  James:   189,  212 

Hamilton,  Major  — :  221 

Harmony  Grove  Cemetery:  Flint 
buried  in,  243 

Harrison,  Gen.  — :  71;  described, 
72;  home  (illus.),  73;  mentioned, 
78 ;    forced  to  stop  with,   84 

Hartford  (Conn.):  Congregational 
Library,  16,  55;  mentioned,  55,  92, 
115,  291 

Hartford  Theological  Seminarj  : 
thanked,  15 

Harvard  Class  Book  for  Class  of 
iSoo:  cited,  31,  34,  314;  as  author- 
ity, 39,  40,  165,  242;  statement 
from,  233 

Harvard  University:  thanked,  15; 
mentioned,  29;  Timothy  Flint  at, 
31-33 ;  Francis  Berrian  rt,  32- 
33 ;  class  historian  relates  inci- 
dent, 39;  class  reunion,  209-210; 
James  Timothy  Flint  at,  232,  233 

Harvard  University  Library:  80, 
footnote 

Havana:  mentioned,  181;  visits,  224- 
225 ;  people,  225 

Haverhill:   218 

Havre    (France):  mentioned,   181 

Hempstead,  Stephen:  letter  to,  80, 
footnote;  mentioned,  91,  footnote, 
92,  291 

Hempstead   family:    mentioned,    141 

Henry,   Matthew:  282,  286 

Herculaneum   (Mo.):  91 

Hinman,    George    W:    29,    footnote 

Hoffman,  Chas.  Fenno:  210,  211; 
admirer  of  Flint,  260 

Hopkins,  Samuel:  287 

Hospitality:    lacking    in    west,    62; 


INDEX 


325 


shown    by    Gen.     Harrison,     72 ; 

shown  little,  79;  great,  131 
Houck,  Louis:  History  of  Missouri, 

cited,  135,  footnote,  316 
Howard,  Luther  G:  40 
Hubbard,  Abigail:  date  of  baptism, 

34,    footnote;    Flint    marries,    34; 

see  Flint,  Airs.   Timothy 
Hubbard,  Rev.  Ebenezer:  34,  41 
Hudson  River:  56,  198 
Hull,  Rev.  — :   164 

Illinois:  ask  for  transfer  to,  80 

Hlinois  River:   106 

Imlay:  45 

Indiana:  journey  through,  75 

Indians:    Shawnoe,    88;    mentioned, 

103,     104;     funeral,     183;     Elder 

Wood's  sermons,  282 ;  stoiy  cited, 

309 
Indian  IVars:  related  to  other  works, 

252 
Ipswich  River:  21 
Italy:  205 
Itinerants:  17,  124 

Jackson  (Mo.):  132;  spends  year 
in,  135;  people,  135-136;  German 
settlement  near,  137-141;  men- 
tioned, 263 

Japan:  273 

Johnson,  Senator  — :  189 

Jones,  J.  G:  book  cited,  153,  foot- 
note 

Journeys:  west,  55-64,  80-91;  on  riv- 
er, 60 ;  through  Ky.,  75 ;  inces- 
sant travel,  102;  up  Miss.  Riv., 
127-132;  on  Miss.,  150-154;  on  ac- 
count of  health,  169-171 ;  north, 
171-176;  return  to  Alexandria, 
178;  account,  180;  north,  195-200; 
south,  200;  from  Cincinnati,  207- 
210;  east,  217-220;  in  Canada, 
220-221;  in  Europe  (?),  222-223; 


in    S.    Amer.     (?),    222-224;     to 
Cuba,  224-225;  future,  238 

Keelboat:  purchases,  83;  embarks, 
119 ;  see  Ooats 

Kentuckians:  first  intimate  experi- 
ence with,  63 ;  manners,  75-76 ; 
mentioned,  92;  restless,  80-81; 
reference,  95;  Flint  compares  self 
to,   101-102 

Kentucky:  mentioned,  55,  69,  189; 
journey  through,  75 ;  manners,  75- 
76 ;  rec'd  gift  of  money,  79 

Kingston  (N.H.):  Flint  works  three 
weeks  in,  47-48 

Kingston  (Miss.):  mentioned,  153, 
footnote 

Knickerbocker:  writes  for,  189;  cit- 
ed as  authorit}%  204,  205,  207,  217, 
220,  221,  222,  225,  227,  260,  261, 
269  ;  takes  charge  of,  207,  210-211 ; 
quotations  from,  208,  209,  211, 
215,  218,  222-223,  224-225,  226- 
227,  244,  footnote,  261,  262,  269; 
article,  212;  criticizes  Mrs.  Trol- 
lope's  book,  213;  resigns,  215; 
mentioned,  231;  reviews,  260-261; 
contributions,  310-313 

Lafayette,   Marquis  de:  200 

Lake  Champlain:   219 

Lake  George:  49 

Lake  Ponchartrain  (La.)  :  155;  cross, 

155-156 
Lake  Winnipisaukee:  218 
Lamartine,  M.  — :  286 
Lancaster  (Mass.)  :  51 
Langtree,     Samuel     Dal)':    210-211, 

215 
La  Prairie:   219 
Larned,    Rev.    Sylvester:    158,    and 

footnote 
Lawrence   Academy    (Groton)  :   40 
Lawrenceburg:  85 


32b 


TIMOTHY    FLINT 


Lawyers:  comparison,  in  various 
sections,   70 

Lear,  King:  129 

Lecture  upon  Natural  History:  28, 
cited,  311 

Lemprierc,  M.  — :  256 

Leominster  (Mass.):  42;  Fourtli  of 
July  oration,  51-52 

Letter:  to  Chas.  Lowell,  47  and  foot- 
note, 232;  of  Flint,  cited,  78-79, 
83.  94-95.  96,  102-103,  104,  109, 
no,  III,  n2,  113,  114,  115,  116, 
117,  118,  119,  121,  125,  127,  128, 
132,  135.  137,  141,  145,  185;  first 
missionary,  56,  58 ;  to  Gen.  Put- 
nam, 63  ;  to  Miss.  Soc.  of  Conn., 
69;  cited,  78,  79,  footnotes;  to 
Stephen  Hempstead,  80,  footnote; 
to  Missionary  Society-  of  Connec- 
ticut cited,  84,  115,  141-142,  145, 
146,  185 ;  first  miss.,  from  St. 
Louis,  90,  91-92 ;  from  St.  Louis, 
94-95 ;  report  from  letter  of  S. 
Giddings,  98,  footnote;  from 
Timothy  Flint,  111-112;  by  Mr. 
Giddings  against  Flint,  112-114, 
291-296;  of  S.  Giddings,  117;  of 
George  A.  Thayer,  195 ;  to  James 
Flint,  196,  199,  206;  in  Athenaum, 
230-231;  to  Rev.  Chas.  Lowell, 
46-47,  232;  family,  235  ;  of  Emeline 
Thomas,  237-238 ;  of  Flint,  240- 
241 ;  of  C.  A.  Clark,  241 ;  of  Hen- 
ry A.  Beers,  250;  of  Flint,  pre- 
served, 305-306 

Lexington   (Ky.)  :  72,  77 

Life  and  Adventures  of  Arthur 
Clenning:  see  Arthur  Clenning 

Litchfield,  J.  A:  letter  from,  35, 
footnote 

London:  222,  270 

London  Athenaum,  The:  see  Athen- 
aum 

London   Quarterly  Review.  263-264 

Louisiana:  mentioned,   188 


Louisville    (Ky.)  :   reaches,    174 
Lowell,  Rev.  Chas:  letter  to,  46-47, 

232;   work  cited,  186,  footnote 
Lowell,  James  Russell :  mentioned,  46 
Lowell    (Mass.):  visits,  204 
Lunenburg:  name  of  Micah's  plan- 
tation, 237 
Lunenburg  (Mass.)  :  librarian  thank- 
ed,  16;  mentioned,  34;   Flint  set- 
tles as  minister,  35-47;  ordination 
of  Flint,  36;  trouble  in  church,  39; 
letter    from,    55;    visits,    177-178; 
208-209 
Lutheran,    German:    minister,    59-60 

McGuffey's  Eclectic  Readers:  52, 

footnote 
Mackenzie,  Alex:  33 
Macoupin:  accredited  to  Flint,  223; 

cited,  311 
Madisonville  (La.):  156 
Mad  River:  59 

Maine:  sufferings  of  family  from,  66 
Mamelle    (Mo.) :    106 
Many,   Col.  — :  170-171 
Marblehead   (Mass.) :  34 
"Marietta  on  the  Ohio":  25,  63 
Massachusetts:    mentioned,    49,    66, 

84,   209 ;    desires   to   return,    145 ; 

changes,  203-206 
Massachusetts   General   Association: 

46 
Massachusetts      Historical      Societ}-: 

Proceedings,    31 ;    becomes    corre- 
sponding member,  201 
Massachusetts  Society  for  promoting 

Christian  Knowledge:  47,  48-49; 

quotation    from    Account    of,    48, 

footnote,   54 
Mathews,  Mr.  — :  94;  trials  of,  292, 

293 
Mediterranean  Sea:  53 
Merrimac  River:  219 
Methodists:    17-18,   66,   68,   96,    280, 

281-282 


INDEX 


327 


Mexico:     Judge     Bullard    in,    166; 

Mexican  War:  273,  277 
mentioned,  191 

Miami  River:  60 

Middle  Ages:  17 

Middlesex   County    (Mass.)-'   25 

Migration:  to  west,  66 

Miller,  Gen.  — :  207 

Mills,  Samuel  J:  80,  footnote,  91, 
footnote,  95 

Mill's  and  Smith's  Journal:  80, 
footnote 

Ministers:  of  the  west,  68-69;  o'f 
Ky.,  76 ;  eloquence  of,  107-108 

Missionaries;  home  compared  to  for- 
eign, 97;  hardships  endured,  145- 
146 

Mississippi  River:  62,  80,  81,  83, 
150,  163,  173,  237,  397;  reach,  85; 
journey,  85-92,  127-131,  150-154; 
prepares  for  trip,  118;  scenery 
along,  120 

Mississippi  Valley:  mentioned,  17; 
development,  272 

Missouri  River:  mentioned,  33,  97, 
119;  dangerous,  110;  mishap,  151 

Montmorency  River:  220 

Montreal:  220 

Monument,  Timothy  Flint's:  inscrip- 
tion, 13,  244-347;  illustration,  245 

Morgan,  Gen.  — :  132 

Morse,  Rev.  Dr.  Jedidiah:  54,  foot- 
note 

Mosquitoes:  great  swarms,   126 

Moundbuilders:  364 

Mounds:  105-106 

Music:  for  religious  service,  78 

Naies:  see  Adayes 

Napoleon,  Bonaparte:  53 

Narrows  (L.I.) :  mentioned,  206;  lo- 
cates at,  2IO 

Nashville  (Tenn.)  :  mentioned,  15, 
277 

Natchez     (Miss.)  :    mentioned,    118, 


164;   described,  152-153;  in,   173; 

goes  to,  339 ;  storm,  239-341 
Natchez  Courier:  cited,  339 
Natchez  Free  Trader:  cited,  239 
Natchitoches:    mentioned,    169,    171, 

239 

Natchitoches,   S.S:   cm,   173 

Navigator:  cited,  62 

Neal,  John:  355 

Newburg  (N.Y.):  56 

Newbury  (Mass.):  41 

Newell,  Harriet:  219 

New  England:  clergymen,  59,  67, 
footnote,  80,  footnote,  91,  footnote, 
96;  people,  78;  mentioned,  150, 
161,  177,  188,  263;  progress  made 
in  ten  years,  176 ;  absence  from, 
203 ;  changes,  203-206 ;  visits,  238 

New  Hampshire:  mentioned,  47,  309, 
219 

New  Harmony  (Ind.)  :  Owen's  col- 
ony, 190 

New  Jersey:   56,  133 

New  Lanark   (Scotland)  :  190 

New  Madrid  (Mo.) :  mentioned,  131, 
152,  293;  experiences,  131-135 

New  Orleans  (La.)  :  levees  near, 
153;  reach,  154;  return  to,  157; 
described,  158-161 ;  mentioned, 
163;  visits,  180-181 ;  vegetation, 
182 

Newport   (Ky.):  57 

Newton  (Sussex  Co.,  N.J.) :  56 

New   York    (state) :  49 

New  York  City:  location  compared 
to  New  Orleans,  161 ;  journey  to, 
180;  reaches,  182;  leaves,  217; 
compared  with  European  cities, 
222 

New  York  Commercial:  258,  316 

New  York  Evening  Post:  257 

New  York  Observer:  257 

Niagara  Falls:  visits,  198;  mention- 
ed, 229 

North  American  Revieiv:  criticism  of 


328 


TIMOTHY    FLINT 


Recollections,  264-266 ;  mentioned, 
271,  footnote;  cited,  317 

North  Bend   (Ohio) :  71 

North  Precinct  Congregation:  22, 
footnote 

North  Reading  (Mass.)  :  librarian 
thanked,  i6;  Parish  Records,  21, 
and  footnote,  317;  mentioned,  21, 
145  ;  saying  in,  22 ;  educational  ad- 
vantages, 29 ;  schoolhouse,  29 ; 
church,  36 ;  visits,  208 ;  writes 
from,  239;  near,  241 

Norton,  Augustus  T:  book  by,  cited, 
91,  footnote,  113,  footnote,  317 

Ohio:  spends  winter,  65-81;  termed 
"Yankee  state,"  68 

Ohio  River:  journey,  60-64;  men- 
tioned, 65,  71,  75,  83,  199 

Ohio  Valley:  17,  79 

Oolemba:  short  story,  189,  272;  cit- 
ed,  309 

Oregon:  274 

Orizaba  (Mex.) :  219 

Osgood,  David:  92,  and  footnote 

Ottawa  River:  220 

Owen,  Robert:  189-193  ;  debates  with 
Rev.  Alex.  Campbell,  190-193;  as 
travelling  companion,  196 

Packets:  New  York  and  Liverpool, 
206 

Paley,  Wm.  — :  278,  286 

Pandect:  weekly  paper,  193;  charge 
against  Flint,  193-194 

Paris:  222,   270 

Parish,  Elijah:  '92,  and  footnote 

Parker,  Theodore:  284 

Pattie,  James  O:  edits  Personal  Nar- 
rative of,   189 

Peabody  and  Co:  211,  230,  231 

Peabody,   Mr.  — :  231 

Peabody,  Joseph:  34,   150 

Peck,  John  Mason:  18,   107,  293 

Pekin :  270 


Pennsylvania:    Germans,    205 

Philadelphia:  59;  compared  with 
European   cities,   222 

Phillips,  Mr.  — :  127 

Phillips   Academy    (Andover)  :   31 

Pierpont,  Rev.  Mr.  — :  200 

Pilgrims:   spirit  of,   282 

Pineville    (La.)  :  cottage   in,  234 

Pioneers:  ministers,  17;  stories,  26; 
expectations,  66;  frequent  realiz- 
ation, 66 ;  trouble,  101 ;  charac- 
teristics, 102-104;  business  meth- 
ods, 104;  sufferings,  105;  Flint  ad- 
mirers,   271 ;    see   Flint,    Timothy 

Pittsburg  (Pa.):  58,  60,  61;  rate 
of  living  compared  with  Boston, 
62 ;    mentioned,    175 

Point  Prairie  (Mo.):  106;  locates 
at,   115 

Post:  see  Arkansas  Post 

Postell,   William:   150 

Potomac  River:   crosses,   175 

Poydras,  Mr.  — :  158 

Presbyterians:  Old  School,  18;  New 
School,  18;  Arminianized,  18;  N. 
Eng.  clergymen,  67,  footnote,  91, 
footnote,  96 ;  Cumberland,  68 ; 
church  organized,  98 ;  see  Church 

Presb}'tery:  Cumberland,  18;  Flint 
attends  meeting,  67 ;  to  be  formed, 
94;    meeting,   117 

Preston,  Mrs.  E.  A:  277 

Prevot,  Surgeon  — :  hanged,   170 

Prince,  Dr.  — :  25,  36 

Princeton  College:  158,  footnote,  287 

Putnam,  Gen.  — :  63 

Quebec:  220 

Railroad:  first  experience  on,  208 

Rapide,  Parish  of:  164 

Raymond   (Mass.)  :  Flint  works  six 

weeks  in,  47-48 
Reading  (Mass.)  :  librarian  thanked, 

16;     North    Parish    Church,    22; 


INDEX 


329 


mentioned,  177,  218 ;  Flint's  death 
place,  242 ;  see  North  Reading 

Recollections  of  the  last  ten  years: 
notes  in  Lunenburg  Libraiy  copy, 
40 ;  dedication,  45 ;  mentioned,  49, 
loi,  142,  151,  155,  268;  begin- 
ning) 55 ;  quotations,  57,  58,  60, 
63,  67,  68,  69,  72,  76,  86,  106,  107, 
120,  126,  127,  128-130,  135-136, 
139,  140,  152,  165,  167,  169,  171, 
173,  175-176,  178,  287;  cited  as 
authority,  70-71,  72,  84,  85,  86, 
87,  88,  89,  90,  96,  97,  103,  104, 
105,  106,  107,  108,  no,  112,  115, 
n8,  120,  121,  122,  123,  124,  125, 
126,  127,  128,  131,  132,  133,  134, 
135,  136,  137.  138,  139,  i4'3,  141. 
149,  ISO,  151,  152,  153,  154,  156, 
i57»  158,  159,  160,  i6i,  163,  164, 
165,  166,  167,  168,  169,  170,  171, 
173.  174.  175,  176,  177.  182;  end 
176;  where  and  when  written, 
177;  left  with  publisher,  178; 
well  received,  186;  Ms.  for  sec- 
ond part,  229;  second  part,  239; 
criticism,  243 ;  related  to  other 
works,  252 ;  criticism  by  W.  H. 
Venable,  253-254;  by  Griswold, 
257 ;  in  U.S.  Literary  Gazette, 
259;  in  Southern  Revietv,  259; 
Swett's  estimate,  257 ;  review  in 
London  Quarterly  Revieiv,  263 ; 
in  North  American  Rei>ieiv,  264- 
266 ;  reference  to  religion,  279 ; 
cited,   306 

Red  River:  88;  home  on,  163,  235, 
243 

Religious  and  Social  Conditions:  in 
Newton,  N.J.,  56 ;  along  route  of 
western  journey,  56-59;  among 
boatmen,  57 ;  among  immigrants, 
66-67,  105,  132;  in  Ohio  Valley-, 
67-70,  71,  75-77,  78;  desperadoes, 
88 ;  in  Ste.  Genevieve,  90-91 ;  in 
St.  Louis,  91-93,  94-95,  98;  attach- 


ment to  religious  form,  96,  97;  in 
and  near  St.  Charles,  103-104,  no, 
111-112;  itinerant  preachers,  107; 
in  Arkansas,  123-125 ;  in  Jackson, 
i35"i36;  among  Germans,  138- 
140;  in  Warrington,  Miss.,  152; 
in  New  Orleans,  159;  in  Havana, 
224-225 

Richards,  Thomas  C:  91,  footnote 

Rideau   Canal:  220 

Robinson  Crusoe:  33 

Rochester    (N.Y.)  :   198 

Rocky  Mountains:  103,  222,  273 

Rome:  270 

Rousseau,  Jean  J :  28 

Roy,   J.   E:   113,   footnote 

Sabine  River:  journey,  169 

St.  Anthony  (falls  of)  :  88 

St.  Charles  (Mo.):  mentioned,  92, 
93,  131,  293,  297;  moves,  97; 
stay  in,  101-118;  acclimatization, 
101;  legislature,  106;  love  for, 
118;  returns,  141-150;  trouble, 
142-146;  prepares  to  depart,  150 

St.  Francis    (Ark.) :   127 

Ste.  Genevieve  (Mo.):  mentioned, 
141 

St.  Lawrence  River:  220 

St.  Louis  (Mo.)  :  mentioned,  80,  and 
footnote,  84,  91,  114,  119,  141, 
291;  stay  in,  91-97;  reasons  for 
leaving,  97;  spends  Sunday,  151 

St.   Paul:  275 

St.   Petersburg   (Russia)  :   65,  270 

St.  Tammany  County   (La.):  156 

Salem  (Mass.)  :  mentioned,  22,  145, 
161,  172,  177,  237;  First  Church, 
25,  36,  46;  North  Church,  36; 
East  Church,  150;  visits,  177; 
Flint  buried  in,  243 

Salt  River:    103 

Saratoga:   mentioned,    177 

Sawyer,  Mr.  — :  92 

Saxon,  S.S:  235 


330 


TIMOTHY    FLINT 


Schenectady    (N.Y.):  208 
School:  applies   for,  47;    in  Cincin- 
nati, 65;  desire  for,  in  Ohio,  68; 

in    St.    Louis,    93;    Mrs.    Flint's, 

108,    109,    294;    in   Jackson,    Mo., 

135;    in  Covington,    156 
Sects,      religious:      compared,      96; 

Pilgrims,  124,  135,  136;  see  under 

names  of  various  denominations 
Seip,   Emeline   Flint:    aid    rendered, 

15;  mentioned,  235,  footnote,  277; 

letters   cited,   317 
Seip,    Frederic:    223,    footnoli',    235, 

footnote,  277;  letters  cited,  317 
Sermon:    preached    at   ordination   of 

Ebenezer  Hubbard,  41 
Shaw,  Lemuel:  210 
"Shawnoe-town" :  85 
Shoshonee  Valley:  uses  son's  works 

in,   237,   252;   criticized  by   N.   P. 

Willis,   257 ;  mentioned,  271,  272, 

277,  282;  cited,  310 
Siamese  twins:  206 
Simpson,     Prof.     Samuel:     thanked, 

16 
Smith,   Mr.  — :   80,   footnote 
Smith,  Elias:  96 
Solomons:  106 
Solons:   106 
South  America:  222,  223;   scene  of 

stories,  223,  224 
Southern  Revievi:  259;  extract,  259- 

260,  cited,  317 
Spartan,    S.S:    163 
Staten  Island:  210 
Sterling  (Mass.) :  51 
Stone,  Eliab:  mentioned,  28,  36,  177 
Stone,  Micah:  29 
Storm:  84;  on  Miss.  Riv.,  119,  128- 

129:    in   Covington,    157;    at  sea, 

182,  225 ;  at  Natchez,  239-241 
Summerville:  summer  home,  234 
Swayze,      Rev.      Samuel :      founds 

church,   153,   footnote 
Swedenborgians:  270 


Swett,  Samuel:  statement,  233; 
article  by,  235;  writes  to,  239- 
241 ;  extract  by,  242 ;  criticism 
by,   257,   269 

Swiss:  in  Ind.,  75 

Tartars:  81 

Teamsters:  of  the  west,  59 

Tennessee:   91,  footnote 

Tennesseeans:  92 

Thayer,   George  A:  195,  footnote 

Thomas,  Gen.  — :  marries  Emeline 
Flint,  232,  233;  daughter,  238 

Thomas,  Emeline  (wife  of  preced- 
ing) :  describes  brother's  death, 
237-238  ;  see  Flint,  Emeline 

Thwaites,  R.G:  cites  Pattie's  Per- 
sonal Narrati've  in  Early  Western 
Travels  series,  189,  footnote,  271, 
footnote,    310 

Tracts:  "Swearer's  Prayer,"  59; 
distributed,    78,    109 

Transylvania  Universitj'  (Lexing- 
ton, Ky.):  77 

Travels:  see  Journeys 

Tremont  House   (Boston)  :  227 

Trinitarian  Part}':  45,  282 

TroUope,  Frances  Milton:  book 
cited,  212;  intimac>-  with  Flints, 
212-213 ;  book  criticised  in  Knick- 
erbocker, 213  ;  praises  Flint  family, 
213;  quotation,  214-215,  258-259; 
mentioned,  221 ;  work  cited,  263, 
318;  admiration  for  Timothy 
Flint,  268-269 

Tuckerman,  Henry  T:  258 

Union,  S.S:  225;  passengers  on, 
225-229 

Unitarians:  does  not  connect  self 
with,  18 ;  comparison  to  Camp- 
bellites,  192;  helps  found  church, 
195;  family  inclines  to,  280,  283; 
lacks  sympathy  with,  284,  285; 
inentioned,  287 


INDEX 


331 


United  States  Literary  Gazette:  259 
Universalist  Society:  of  North  Read- 
ing,  29 
Upham,  Chas.  W:  book  cited,  287, 
footnote 

Venable,  W.  H:  work  mentioned, 
16;  error  in  article,  1S5,  footnote; 
extract  from,  239;  criticism  of 
Recollections,  253-254;  quotation, 
254,  272;  work  cited,  314 

Versailles:  80 

Vevay   (Ind.)  :  75 

Vicksburg  (Miss.):  152 

Villemain,  M.  — :  286 

Vincennes   (Ind.) :  75 

Voltaire,  School  of:  mentioned,  170 

Walla  Walla  (Wash.)  :  mentioned, 

277 
Wanborough  (III.)  :  260 
Warrenton  (Miss.) :  152 
Washington  (D.C.) :  described,  196- 

197;  mentioned,  270 
Washington   (Miss.)  :  118 
Washington  (Pa.) :  mentioned,  175 
Wasiiington       Benevolent       Society 

(Mass.)  :  51 
Washington,  George:  society  named 

for,  51 
W^atts,  Isaac:  39,  279,  2S0 
Webster,  Daniel:  52 
Weiberg,    Rev.    Mr.    — :     139-140, 

141 
Welland  Canal:  220 
Western    Monthly   Re-vietv:    quoted, 

25.  27.  30,   187-188,   194,   199-200, 


232,  270,  274,  283,  284,  285,  287; 
mentioned,  29,  130,  179,  267, 
269;  cited  as  authority,  122,  155, 
157,  180,  181,  182,  1S3,  187,  193, 
194,  196,  197,  198,  200,  206,  212, 
213,  251,  252,  253,  256,  271,  272, 
274,  275,  276,  278,  2Sc,  281,  282, 
283,  284,  285,  286,  287;  article  in, 
180;  establishes,  185;  reasons  for 
establishing,  186-188;  financial 
value,  18S;  changes,  188;  weak- 
ness, 189;  translations,  233;  criti- 
cism of  work,  243  ;  advertisement, 
249;  related  to  other  works,  252; 
religious  views  in,  283-285;  con- 
tributions to,  307-313 

West  Indies:  191,  222 

Wheeling:   62,   174-175,   196 

White  Mts:  218,  219 

White  River:    120,    123 

Whitewater   (Ky.)  :  57 

Whitewater  River:  German  settle- 
ment, 137-141 

Whiskey:  used  by  boatmen,  85,  88; 
by  Dutch,  139 

Wilbray,  Capt.  — :  180 

Vl^Illis,  Nathaniel  Parker:  mentioned, 
230,  267,  footnote;  life  of,  253; 
criticises  Flint,  257;  admiration 
for  Flint,  268 

Wilson,  Rev.  Dr.  Joshua  L:  193 

Wood,  Elder:  character  in  S/io- 
shonee  Valley,  282 

Worcester,  Samuel :  287 

Yale  University:  thanked,   15 
Yankees:  63,  64 


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